...even Communist newspapers have to tell the truth sometimes. It is a relatively terse article, considering the scope of the Ryongchon distaster, but it's better than nothing, I guess.
The most interesting part of the article is the last sentence:
It appreciates the willingness expressed by the governments of various countries and international bodies and organizations to render [sic] humanitarian assistance to the DPRK.
We have had no requests from the North Koreans for any support. China is the logical country for them to go to since it's close to China and China is right there, can provide whatever assistance is necessary, but we have received no requests from North Korea.
As you know, we have humanitarian concerns with respect to North Korea. We are the largest contributor of food for the North Korean people. So we're always trying to do, trying to respond to humanitarian crises around the world, but we have no requests from North Korea.
It is very unusual and so fast for NK to make disaster public. It shows how the damage is serious.