The number of confirmed deaths from Myanmar’s devastating earthquake approached 1,700 Sunday and was expected to keep rising as rescue teams and aid agencies struggled to provide relief amid widespread rubble and growing desperation.
The 7.7-magnitude quake Friday rocked an impoverished Southeast Asian nation already beleaguered by years of civil war. The military government put the tentative death toll at 1,644; thousands have been injured and hundreds are missing. The junta chief, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, warned that the number of fatalities could rise and has pleaded for international assistance.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said it has mobilized hundreds of volunteers to aid search and rescue efforts, provide first aide and distribute emergency relief items such as blankets, tarpaulins and hygiene kits.
“This is not just a disaster, it is a complex humanitarian crisis layered over existing vulnerabilities,” said Alexander Matheou, Red Cross regional director for Asia Pacific. “Myanmar continues to face internal displacement and food insecurity. This earthquake exacerbates an already fragile situation.”
Devastation: More deaths reported after Myanmar earthquake
‘What we are seeing here is widespread destruction’
India, China, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Russia were among countries in the region that rushed help to Myanmar. President Donald Trump has promised the U.S. will also provide assistance.
In the town of Sagaing not far from the quake’s epicentre, resident Han Zin told Reuters much of the town still had electricity Sunday and that drinking water was running low.
“What we are seeing here is widespread destruction. Many buildings have collapsed into the ground,” he said. “We have received no aid, and there are no rescue workers in sight.”
The civil war, prompted by a 2021 military coup that ousted the elected government of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, had left the nation’s critical infrastructure battered and more than 3 million people displaced.
Thailand also rocked by quake
The quake also shook parts of neighboring Thailand, killing at least 18 people across the capital of Bangkok where an unfinished 30-story building collapsed. Thai authorities said at least 76 people remained trapped under the debris, and rescue operations continued for a third day using drones and sniffer dogs to hunt for survivors.
Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said Sunday that the building, being constructed by China, should have withstood the quake, the Bangkok Post reported. He said a committee formed to probe the collapse was expected to conclude it work in seven days.
China has sent an expert to inspect the building, and four Chinese workers were questioned for seizing construction documents, he said.
Contributing: Reuters
