Attend to living, not dead, after disasters: WHO

Doctor disinfect the body of a student recovered from a collapsed school in the earthquake-hit in Wenchuan, Sichuan province, May 16, 2008.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Getting clean water to survivors of a disaster is far more important than disposing of the dead, but myths persist that corpses somehow spread disease, the World Health Organization said on Friday.

The U.N. health agency issued a statement after learning that Chinese rescue teams were distributing disinfectant to spray on the bodies of those who died in Monday's earthquake in southern China, which has killed 15,000 people.

Similar concerns were expressed in Myanmar, where more than 130,000 people are dead or missing after Cyclone Nargis hit on May 2.

WHO advised rescuers to focus on the living, not the dead, and to pay special attention to the old, the very young and the sick.

"There is a widespread and erroneous belief that dead bodies are a source of disease and therefore a threat to public health. This is untrue," WHO said in a statement.

"There is no public health threat from dead bodies and this misapprehension causes unnecessary diversion of staff and resources at a critical time. Pressure from misinformed journalists and media organizations can cause governments to behave inappropriately, for example spraying the area around dead bodies with disinfectant or covering dead bodies with lime," WHO added in the advisory.

"There has never been a documented case of a post-natural-disaster epidemic that could be traced to dead bodies. Those killed by natural disasters are generally healthy at the time of their death, and therefore very unlikely to be a source of infection to others."

WHO said epidemics are more likely to come from unsafe food and dirty water.

"Unsafe food and a lack of access to safe water, facilities for personal hygiene and safe sanitation arrangements all create a real risk for outbreaks of infectious disease at any time, but after a disaster these conditions, added to large numbers of people in overcrowded temporary shelters, heighten the danger," WHO said.

The organization said other misinformed beliefs could interfere with effective relief efforts:

-- Myth: Foreign medical volunteers with any kind of medical background are needed.

Reality: The local population almost always covers immediate life-saving needs. Only medical personnel with skills that are not available in the affected country may be needed.

-- Myth: Disasters are random killers.

Reality: Disasters strike hardest at the most vulnerable group, the poor - especially women, children and the elderly.

-- Myth: Locating disaster victims in temporary settlements is the best alternative.

Reality: It should be the last alternative. Many agencies rightly use funds normally spent for tents to purchase building materials, tools, and other construction-related support in the affected country.

(Reporting by Maggie Fox; Editing by Will Dunham and Eric Walsh)