The death toll from an earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand continues to rise with one prediction that fatalities could exceed 100,000.
The Context
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said Saturday that between 10,000 and 100,000 people may have been killed following the 7.7 earthquake which struck near Mandalay, in the center of the country, on Friday and was felt in neighboring nations.
As of Saturday morning, the confirmed death toll topped 1,000 on Saturday with 2,376 injured, according to the country’s military-led government.
The difficulty of movement around the country which is in the throes of a civil war have raised fears that the number of fatalities could jump significantly.
Newsweek has contacted the USGS for comment.
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What To Know
The earthquake struck at midday local time Friday near Mandalay, followed by several aftershocks—including one measuring a strong 6.4 magnitude—that toppled buildings and bridges and buckled roads.
The International Federation of the Red Cross in Myanmar told the BBC that more than 18 million people live within the affected area and many will be without safe shelter, access to clean water or reliable healthcare.
Myanmar declared a state of emergency across the six worst-affected regions after the quake, while in neighboring Thailand, Bangkok city authorities said so far six people had been found dead, 26 injured and 47 were still missing.
In an update at 6:51 a.m. GMT (1:51 a.m. ET), USGS said that there was a 24-percent chance of there being between 1,000 and 10,000 total fatalities, and a 35-percent possibility of between 10,000 and 100,000.
There was also a 32-percent chance of the death toll exceeding 100,000, according to the American government body, which noted that the population in the areas affected mostly lived in structures that are vulnerable to earthquakes, although resistant structures do exist.
It said the majority of vulnerable buildings were made of materials such as metal, timber, and unreinforced brick masonry construction.
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In the Myanmar capital Naypyidaw, crews were repairing damaged roads, while electricity, phone and internet services remained down, The Associated Press reported.
A civil war has raged since 2021 which means the country lacks the infrastructure to deal with such natural disasters. A shortage of machinery forced survivors to dig through dirt with their bare hands to try to rescue those still trapped under rubble.
“There’s too much rubble, and no rescue teams have come for us,” earthquake survivor Htet Min Oo, 25, told Reuters in Mandalay, describing how some of his extended family members remain trapped under a collapsed building.
Freelance journalist Thomas van Linge posted footage on X, formerly Twitter, showing cracks in the ground following the quake.
Meanwhile, in Amarapura, a township in Mandalay city, a rescue worker said he was trying to reach 140 monks still trapped under rubble.
Several countries have deployed rescue teams to Myanmar after the country’s military government made a rare plea for help.
A Chinese team was the first international rescue group to reach Myanmar’s biggest city Yangon on Saturday morning, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
What People Are Saying
USGS on Saturday: “High casualties and extensive damage are probable and the disaster is likely widespread.”
Brian Baptie, a seismologist with the British Geological Survey, per the AP: “When you have a large earthquake in an area where there are over a million people, many of them living in vulnerable buildings, the consequences can often be disastrous.”
What happens next
Myanmar’s junta chief Min Aung Hlaing has issued a rare appeal for international aid, whereas previous military regimes have shunned foreign aid even after major natural disasters. Meanwhile, the race against time for rescue workers continues as they strive to save survivors buried under collapsed buildings.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
