Monitoring Desk:Â
Mandalay:Â A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck central Myanmar on Friday, killing at least 1,700 people and causing widespread destruction. The tremor, the strongest to hit the country in over a century, also impacted neighboring Thailand, where dozens remain trapped under debris.
The epicenter was located near Mandalay, and experts warn that the death toll could exceed 1700, according to early estimates from the US Geological Survey. Myanmar’s state broadcaster, MRTV, confirmed the fatalities, while emergency teams faced significant challenges accessing affected areas due to collapsed infrastructure, power outages, and ongoing armed conflicts. The country’s response efforts are severely hampered by the civil war that erupted after the 2021 military coup.
Residents described the quake as sudden and intense. A woman from Mandalay told CNN that her grandmother was trapped under rubble after their home partially collapsed. Structural damage has been reported across the city.
The earthquake also caused devastation in Thailand, where at least 10 people died in Bangkok following the collapse of a high-rise under construction. More than 100 people are feared trapped as Thai authorities rush to conduct rescue operations.
International aid has begun arriving, with China and India among the first to respond. A Chinese rescue team reached Myanmar on Saturday morning, while India has dispatched medical teams and emergency relief supplies.
