Death Toll Rises In Thailand, Myanmar Earthquakes

• Bangkok declares disaster area with dozens trapped under skyscraper

Eight people have been killed and many others feared trapped after a construction building in Pyi Gyi Tagon township of Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city, collapsed at about 1 pm on Friday.

Eight people have been killed and many others feared trapped after a construction building in Pyi Gyi Tagon township of Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city, collapsed at about 1 pm on Friday following a powerful earthquake rocked Myanmar and neighboring Thailand

The incident in Bangkok saw dozens being buried when a high-rise building under construction collapsed while photos and video from two hard-hit cities in Myanmar showed many collapsed buildings and other destruction, raising fears that many were killed or injured.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said the quake was shallow, at a depth of just 10km (six miles) with the epicentre near the central city of Mandalay. The 7.7 magnitude quake struck at midday and was followed by a strong 6.4 magnitude aftershock.

An eyewitness who requested anonymity said; “The whole of Mandalay city was affected by the earthquake. The rescue teams and hospitals are now overrun. We are managing with the resources we have in the neighbourhood”.

It was also gathered that two people, a middle aged man and an older woman, had died in the building collapse.

Reports on Friday quoted a Deputy Prime Minister as saying that Thai rescuers have been battling to free about 81 people still trapped in the rubble of a collapsed building in the Thai capital Bangkok after the strong earthquake.

This is as the Thai Defence Minister Phumtham Wechachai told reporters that three people have been confirmed dead with buildings and public infrastructure collapsing and damaged due to the 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar.

Also speaking on the unfortunate development, Marie Manrique, Programme Coordinator for the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC) told reporters in Geneva, via video link from Yangon, that “Public infrastructure has been damaged including roads, bridges and public buildings.

“We currently have concerns for large scale dams that people are watching to see the conditions of them”, adding; “We anticipate the impact to be quite large”.

With damage along a road in Naypyidaw after the earthquake in central Myanmar, the Friday’s incident was forceful enough to send water sloshing out of pools, some high up in high-rises, as the tremor shook.

Authorities in Bangkok have been forced to declare disaster area with dozens trapped under skyscraper, even as the United States Geological Survey said the quake was shallow, at a depth of just 10 kilometres (six miles) with the epicentre near the central city of Mandalay

An eyewitness and former Guardian reporter, Elena Cresci stated thus; ‘Everything was swaying, then I realised it was the building’:

Recalling her escape from the Bangkok building, Elena said she was on the 28th floor of her building near Chatuchak Park in Bangkok, Thailand, when she felt the earthquake today (Friday).

In a voice note to the Guardian live blog, Elena described her experience thus: “I was cooking some food and I went to get something. I thought I was really light-headed from not having eaten, everything was swaying, then I realised it was the building.

“I ran, grabbing my bag with my wallet, phone and keys. Everyone was running out of the building. I ran down the stairs from the 28th floor and the whole building was shaking. You could see plaster falling down. People were shouting ‘hurry, hurry’ in Thai.

“I don’t know how long it took for me to run down from the 28th floor but by the time I got to the bottom, it [the building] had stopped shaking. I could see the cracks in the wall and that was pretty scary. We crossed the road and looked up at the building not sure what was going to happen … people were pretty panicked.”

Speaking from a nearby cafe where she had taken shelter, Cresci said she had not yet gone back to her home. “I’m just building up the courage to [go back],” she said, adding that she would not feel comfortable sleeping there tonight.

Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch has called for Myanmar’s Military junta to allow humanitarian access into the disaster areas.

Deputy Asia Director at Human Rights Watch, Bryony Lau is quited as saying; “The Myanmar junta should immediately facilitate humanitarian access to areas affected by the earthquake.

“The military has an appalling history of blocking aid following natural disasters, depriving people of assistance and increasing the suffering of communities affected,”