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YANGON, Myanmar: A cyclone that struck Myanmar this weekend left hundreds, including Rohingya Muslims, feared dead.

The brunt of the cyclone was borne by Myanmar’s impoverished Rakhine State, with winds of up to 130 mph ripping roofs off homes and bringing a storm surge that inundated the state capital, Sittwe.

The region has a large population of Rohingya Muslims, a persecuted minority that successive Myanmar governments have refused to recognize. More than one million live in sprawling camps in neighbouring Bangladesh, having fled military crackdowns in recent years.

A resident in the area, who declined to be identified over concerns for his safety, told Reuters that more than 100 Rohingya were killed, based on assessments from multiple villages he said he had visited in the aftermath.

Two other residents contacted by Reuters also said a large number of people had been killed, as did a diplomatic source briefed on the situation, who did not provide details.

Also, news portal Myanmar Now reported that hundreds were feared dead, while aid groups said there were a “significant number of deaths.”

Meanwhile, Myanmar’s state media said three people were killed.

A spokesperson for the pro-democracy shadow National Unity Government told Reuters, “We received confirmation of about 400 Rohingya deaths, mainly around Sittwe area.”

The storm was one of the worst since Cyclone Nargis swept across parts of southern Myanmar killing nearly 140,000 people in 2008.

A United Nations official said 5.4 million people were expected to have been in the storm’s path, the majority of whom were considered vulnerable.

“It’s really a nightmare scenario for the cyclone to hit areas with such deep pre-existing needs,” said Ramanathan Balakrishnan at the UN’s Office of Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Shelter, water, sanitation, and relief items were early priorities, he said.

Storm damage to communications and road infrastructure, and ongoing restrictions by Myanmar’s military government, was making it difficult to get information from, and delivering aid to the affected area, non-governmental organisations said.

Non-governmental relief organisation Partners said on Twitter, “We are scaling up our response effort to provide critical relief supplies, like rice and tarps, to Rohingya communities affected by Cyclone Mocha.”