As search work continues, earthquake deaths in Myanmar jump to more than 1,600

Number of deaths Myanmar’s powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake Thailand jumped to more than 1,600 on Saturday, and is expected to rise as searches grow.

The country’s military-led government said in a statement Saturday that 1,644 people were found dead, while the number of injured jumped to 3,408, with at least 139 missing. At least 10 people were killed in neighboring Bangkok.

Francesco Capoluongo of the International Federation of the Myanmar Red Cross told the BBC that as more than 18 million people live in the earthquake-affected areas, they expect death toll to continue to increase.

“Search and rescue are still in progress,” she said. “It’s hard to verify any number now, we know it will continue to increase, and (this is) there are many of 18 million people now without safe shelter, access to clean water, reliable health care.”

Myanmar, also known as Myanmar, is in the pain of a long bloody civil war that has caused a huge humanitarian crisis. It makes movements across the country difficult and dangerous, complicates relief efforts and raises concerns that death toll will still rise sharply.

The earthquake hit at noon Friday, not far from Mandalay, followed by several aftershocks, including one with a size of 6.4. It sends buildings to the ground in many areas, curved roads, causing the bridge to collapse and blast the dam.

In Naypyidaw, the capital, staff worked Saturday to repair damaged roads, while power, telephone and internet services are still declining in much of the city. The earthquake lowered many buildings, including multiple units with government civil servants, but the city was blocked by authorities on Saturday.

The government said more than 1,590 homes were damaged in the Mandalay area in the centre of the earthquake.

The destruction of Thailand

In neighbouring Thailand, the earthquake rocked the Greater Bangkok region, which has about 17 million people and other parts of the country.

Bangkok City authorities said so far, six people have died, 26 injured and 47 have disappeared, most of them from construction sites near the capital’s popular Chatuchak market.

On Saturday, more heavy equipment was brought in to move a lot of rubble, but hoped to gradually disappear between missing friends and family and find them alive.

“I’ve been praying that they have survived, but when I got here and saw the ruins – which corner might be in? Which corner? I’m still praying that all six are still alive.”

“I can’t accept it. When I saw this, I can’t accept it. One of my close friends was there, too,” she said.

Waenphet Panta said she hadn’t heard from her daughter Kanlayanee since she called an hour before the earthquake. A friend told her Kanlayanee had been working on the building on Friday.

“I pray that my daughter will survive and she will survive in the hospital,” she said.

Thai authorities say earthquakes and aftershocks are felt in most provinces of the country. Many places in the north reported losses to residential buildings, hospitals and temples, including Chiang Mai, but the only casualties were reported in Bangkok.

Rescuers seek help when international aid arrives

After more than 24 hours of desperate search, many exhausted rescuers asked for some relief.
“We have been here since last night. We haven’t sleeped. More help is needed here,” rescuers told AFP. “We have enough manpower, but not enough cars. We are using light trucks to transport bodies. A light truck has about 10-20 bodies.”

In a country where the former government sometimes received foreign aid, Min Ain said Myanmar is ready to receive external aid.

China and Russia are the largest arms suppliers of the Myanmar military and are one of the first to receive humanitarian aid.

China said it has sent more than 135 rescue workers and experts, as well as supplies such as medical kits and generators, and has committed to providing about $13.8 million in emergency humanitarian aid. Russia’s emergency ministry said it had flown among 120 rescue workers and supplies.

India has also sent a search and rescue team and a medical team, while Malaysia said it will send 50 people on Sunday.

South Korea said it would provide $2 million worth of humanitarian aid through international organizations and allocate $5 million to start relief efforts.

President Trump said Friday that the United States will help respond.

Mr. Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that he had spoken with officials in the country, “It’s a real bad and we’ll help.”

But some experts are concerned about the work given his administration’s in-depth cuts to foreign aid.

Natural disasters outside of civil war

Myanmar’s army seized power from the elected government in February 2021 and is now involved in a bloody civil war that includes long-standing militias and newly formed pro-democracy politics.

The army continued to launch an offensive even after the earthquake, with three air strikes in northern Kane State, also known as Karenni, Shouther Shan and the Border Mandalay State in the south, said the border of Mandelay Yan State was Dave Eubank, a U.S. Special Forces soldier, who established the Free Burma Rangers, a humanitarian aid organization that provided assistance to two theaters and civilians, which has helped Burma and civilians in 1990 since 1990.

Eubank told the Associated Press that most of the villages in the area he was operating had been destroyed by the military, so the earthquake had little effect.

“People are in the jungle, and when the earthquake strikes, I’m in the jungle – it’s powerful, but the trees just moved, and that’s what we do, so we have no direct impact, even if the Burmese army is still attacking after the earthquake.”

In Northern Shan, an earthquake killed seven militia members and damaged five buildings, including a school, and Mai Rukow, editor of the Shan-based online media Shwe Phee Phee Myay News Agency, told The Associated Press that in Northern Shan, a rebel-controlled air strike was carried out by rebels.

Government forces have lost control of much of Myanmar, and many places are very dangerous or impossible to reach the aid groups. According to the United Nations, the battle has been displaced, with nearly 20 million people displaced.

“Although the full situation of damage is still happening, most of us have never seen such destruction before,” said Haider Yaqub, Myanmar State Director of Yangon NGO Plan International.

“There is no doubt that humanitarian needs will be very high.”