With at least 17 additional people killed in neighboring Thailand, Myanmar’s death toll from Friday’s 7.7-magnitude earthquake has risen to 1,644, and rescuers are working quickly to find survivors. The extent of the damage is still increasing, with buildings, bridges, and highways in the impacted areas collapsing.
In order to aid relief efforts, Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government (NUG) declared a unilateral partial truce of the country’s continuing civil conflict amid the destruction. According to the news agency Associated Press, the number of injured increased to 3,408, and 139 individuals are still unaccounted for. Additionally, authorities have cautioned that as search efforts continue, the number may increase much more.
As aftershocks shook the region on Sunday, residents of Mandalay, the hardest-hit city, frantically combed through the debris in search of survivors. Minutes after the first earthquake, which was centered close to Mandalay, a strong 6.7-magnitude aftershock struck, wreaking havoc on the 1.7 million-person city.
Bricks were thrown aside as Win Lwin, the owner of a nearby tea store, rummaged through the wreckage of a restaurant. Here, about seven people lost their lives. He was cited by news agency AFP as stating, “I know there cannot be any survivors, but I’m looking for more bodies.”
In order to allow relief efforts that are being assisted by China, Russia, and India, Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government (NUG) ordered a two-week partial truce in earthquake-affected areas beginning Sunday.
Aid organizations have stated that Myanmar is ill-prepared for a catastrophe of this magnitude, and the UN has cautioned that the government lacks the medical supplies necessary to react appropriately. Myanmar was already in disarray before to the earthquake; the civil war had forced 3.5 million people to flee their homes and put many more at risk of starvation.
At least 17 people were killed and 32 injured when a 30-story building that was being built in Bangkok collapsed due to an earthquake in Thailand. An other 83 persons are still unaccounted for; they are thought to be buried beneath the debris close to the well-known Chatuchak weekend market. In a desperate search for survivors, rescuers deployed thermal imaging drones, sniffer dogs, and motorized diggers.
