Hundreds Feared Dead as Huge Earthquake hits Myanmar and Thailand

[Meatpie]

Good afternoon.

A 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit Myanmar near the city of Mandalay earlier today with tremors felt across Thailand and in China. A strong aftershock of 6.4 magnitude also struck Myanmar, where three people died after a mosque collapsed. The death toll is expected to rise, with Myanmar’s ruling military saying many civilians were killed and injured.



The quake triggered the collapse of buildings hundreds of miles away in Thailand. At least three people have died in nation’s capital, and authorities are racing to free 81 people believed to be trapped under the rubble of an under-construction high-rise in the city, officials said.

Myanmar, one of Asia’s poorest nations, is reeling from a civil war sparked by a 2021 military coup. Weak infrastructure makes it ill-equipped to deal with major natural disasters. Swathes of the country are run by a patchwork of militias, making it extremely difficult to gather reliable information. The military also regularly cuts communications in conflict zone.

Earthquake also turned a Bangkok rooftop pool into waterfall.

 

[Meatpie]

Electricity and internet are down in several parts of Myanmar on Friday following a major earthquake, including in the cities of Mandalay and Sagaing, the Red Cross
says.

 

[Meatpie]

Crane operator ejected and killed.