The number of fatalities from a significant earthquake in Myanmar has increased to 1,644, as reported by the ruling junta, while 3,408 individuals have sustained injuries.
A release from the junta’s information division indicated that at least 139 individuals remain unaccounted for following yesterday’s shallow 7.7-magnitude quake, which was succeeded moments later by a 6.7-magnitude aftershock.
The earthquake caused widespread devastation, with buildings collapsing, bridges falling, and roads being warped throughout various regions of Myanmar. Major destruction has been reported in Mandalay, the country’s second-largest city, which is home to over 1.7 million residents.
“We require assistance,” stated Thar Aye, a 68-year-old resident of Mandalay. “We lack sufficient supplies.”
Additionally, around ten more fatalities have been confirmed in Bangkok.
However, due to severely disrupted communication, the full extent of the disaster is just beginning to surface from the isolated military-led state, and the death toll is anticipated to rise considerably.
In Mandalay, AFP reporters witnessed rescuers successfully extracting a woman alive from the debris of an apartment block. A Red Cross representative noted that more than 90 individuals could be trapped.
Several levels of the Sky Villa Condominium, which has 12 storeys, were flattened on top of each other.
‘It started shaking’
According to geologists, this was the most significant earthquake to strike Myanmar in decades, with tremors strong enough to inflict substantial damage on buildings in Bangkok, located hundreds of kilometers away from the epicenter.
In Mandalay, AFP reporters observed a historic Buddhist pagoda that had been reduced to dust.
“It began shaking, and then it became serious,” recounted a soldier stationed at a checkpoint near the pagoda.
A building collapse in Bangkok, Thailand, followed the earthquake.
“The monastery also fell. One monk has died; some sustained injuries. We rescued a few people and transported them to the hospital.”
Security personnel at Mandalay Airport turned away journalists.
“It has been closed since yesterday,” stated one guard. “The ceiling collapsed, but fortunately, no one was injured.”
Damage to the airport complicates relief efforts in a nation whose emergency services and healthcare system have already been severely affected by four years of civil conflict initiated by a military coup in 2021.
Rare junta plea for help
In an unusual move, junta chief Min Aung Hlaing made a public appeal for international aid yesterday, underscoring the seriousness of the disaster.
Historically, previous military regimes have shunned foreign assistance, even in the aftermath of significant natural calamities.
Following the quake, the country declared a state of emergency across the six most severely impacted regions. In a major hospital located in the capital, Naypyidaw, doctors were compelled to treat patients outdoors.
People await news of their loved ones in Bangkok at the site of a collapsed building.
Offers for foreign assistance began pouring in, with US President Donald Trump promising aid on Friday.
A flight from India carrying essential supplies such as hygiene kits, blankets, and food arrived in Yangon, the commercial capital, on Saturday.
China announced it sent over 80 rescue personnel to Myanmar and pledged 100 million yuan (€12.7 million) in emergency humanitarian aid.
Aid organizations have cautioned that Myanmar is ill-prepared to manage a disaster of this scale.
Before the earthquake, approximately 3.5 million individuals were already displaced by ongoing civil strife, with many at risk of starvation.
Bangkok building collapse
On the other side of the border in Bangkok, rescue operations continued as night fell, searching for survivors trapped beneath the rubble of a 30-storey skyscraper that had collapsed during construction.
Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt reported that eight people have been confirmed dead due to the building collapse, while at least eight others have been rescued.
However, he noted that 79 individuals remain unaccounted for in the structure, located near the popular Chatuchak weekend market.
“I can’t put into words how I feel—it happened in an instant,” said construction worker Khin Aung.
Rescue teams were seen searching for individuals trapped under debris in Mandalay.
“All my friends and my brother were inside the building when it fell. I have no words to express my feelings.”
Earlier, the city’s governor informed AFP that roughly ten people had been confirmed deceased across Bangkok, the majority being victims of the skyscraper collapse.
Thermal imaging drones have been deployed to detect signs of life within the wreckage; Chadchart mentioned that radar had identified the locations of around 30 individuals.
A team equipped with diggers is working to clear debris and reach victims under floodlights, while rescue dogs have also been utilized.
Bangkok city officials announced they will deploy over 100 engineers to assess building safety after receiving more than 2,000 damage reports.
