Myanmar, Thailand earthquake: 1,600+ dead with numbers expected to rise

BANGKOK (AP) - A powerful earthquake rocked Myanmar and neighboring Thailand on Friday, killing more than 1,600 people and destroying buildings, a bridge and a dam. Photos and video from two hard-hit cities showed extensive damage. At least 10 died in the Thai capital, where a high-rise under construction collapsed.

What we know:

The 7.7 magnitude quake, with an epicenter near Mandalay, Myanmar's second-largest city, struck at midday and was followed by several aftershocks, including one that was a magnitude of 6.4.

The military in Myanmar announced on Saturday that more than 1,600 people had been killed with that number expected to go up. More than 3,400 people were injured and more than 100 are still missing. 

In Thailand, Bangkok city officials have confirmed 10 people dead, including nine from a collapsed, under construction high-rise. The collapse was caught on camera. Nearly 80 people from that site are still unaccounted for.

What we don't know:

The full extent of death, injury and destruction was not immediately clear — particularly in Myanmar, which is embroiled in a civil war and where information is tightly controlled at the best of times and were it appeared to be widespread.

Crane-topped building collapsed in a cloud of dust

In Bangkok, at least three people were killed in the building collapse and 90 were missing, according to Defense Minister Phumtham Wechayachai. He offered no more details about the ongoing rescue efforts but first responders said that seven people had been rescued so far from the area.

At least two of the dead were construction workers who were killed by falling rubble or debris, rescue worker Songwut Wangpon told reporters. The building was being built by the China Railway Construction Corporation for Thailand’s government auditor general.

Elsewhere, people in Bangkok evacuated from their buildings were cautioned to stay outside in case there were more aftershocks.

The U.S. Geological Survey and Germany’s GFZ center for geosciences said the earthquake was a shallow 10 kilometers (6.2 miles), according to preliminary reports. Shallower earthquakes tend to cause more damage.

Screaming and panic as buildings swayed

Bangkok’s city hall declared the city a disaster area to facilitate the response. The greater metropolitan area is home to more than 17 million people, many of whom live in high-rise apartments.

"All of a sudden the whole building began to move. Immediately there was screaming and a lot of panic," said Fraser Morton, a tourist from Scotland, who was in one of Bangkok’s many malls.

"I just started walking calmly at first but then the building started really moving, yeah, a lot of screaming, a lot of panic, people running the wrong way down the escalators."

Like Morton, thousands of people poured into Benjasiri Park from nearby shopping malls, high rises and apartment buildings along Bangkok’s busy Sukhumvit Road.

Monastery hit, dam bursts

The earthquake reportedly brought down multiple buildings in Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-largest city, including the Ma Soe Yane monastery.

A video posted online showed robed monks in the street shooting video of the multistory monastery before it suddenly fell into the ground. It was not immediately clear whether anyone was harmed.

Christian Aid said its partners and colleagues on the ground reported that a dam burst in the city, causing water levels to rise in the lowland areas in the area.

The Red Cross said downed power lines added to challenges for their teams trying to reach several hard-hit areas.

Bridge collapse, highway damaged

In Mandalay, which was close to the epicenter, the earthquake damaged part of the former royal palace and buildings, according to videos and photos released on Facebook social media.

In the Sagaing region, southwest of Mandalay, a 90-year-old bridge collapsed, and some sections of the highway connecting Mandalay and Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon, were damaged.

In the capital Naypyitaw, the quake damaged religious shrines, sending parts toppling to the ground.

Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, a military government spokesperson, told state television MRTV that blood was in high demand in the hospitals in earthquakes-hit areas, especially Mandalay, Sagaing, and Naypyitaw.

He urged blood donors to contact the hospitals as soon as possible.

‘Significant damage’

The Red Cross said downed power lines are adding to challenges for their teams trying to reach Mandalay and Sagaing regions and southern Shan state.

"Initial reports from the ground suggest the earthquake has caused significant damage," the Red Cross said. "Information on humanitarian needs is still being gathered."

State of emergency

A state of emergency has been declared in six regions and states in Myanmar by the military-run government.

State-run MRTV television said the government’s proclamation includes the capital Naypyitaw and Mandalay, after the earthquake and a strong aftershock, whose epicenter was near the country’s second largest city.

Myanmar is in the midst of a civil war and many areas are not easily accessible and it was not immediately clear what relief efforts the military would be able to provide.

People rush for safety in teeming Bangkok

People in the Silom business district of Bangkok evacuated office buildings and condominium towers along Rama IV Road and streamed into nearby Lumphini Park. The sidewalks filled with work crews with neon green shirts, along with other workers in hard hats and blue and green uniform shirts.

Along the walkways of the park and the sidewalks of Silom and nearby Sathon, people in business attire and company uniforms huddled or stood in packs talking and checking their phones. Some moving through the crowds were crying or visibly distraught.

Paul Vincent, a tourist visiting from England, was at a streetside bar when the quake struck.

"The next thing, everybody came on the street, so there was a lot of screaming and panicking, which obviously made it a lot worse," he said.

As he came onto the street himself, he said he saw a high-rise building swaying and water was falling from a rooftop pool.

"When I saw the building, oh my God, that’s when ... it hit me," he said. "There was people crying in the streets and, you know, the panic was horrendous really."

Damage reported in nearby China

The earthquake was felt in Yunnan and Sichuan provinces in China and caused injuries and damage to houses in the city of Ruili on the border with northern Myanmar, according to Chinese media reports.

Videos that one outlet said it had received from a person in Ruili showed building debris littering a street and a person being wheeled on a stretcher toward an ambulance.

The shaking in Mangshi, a Chinese city about 100 kilometers (60 miles) northeast of Ruili, was so strong that people couldn’t stand, one resident told The Paper, an online media outlet.

Thai prime minister promises all necessary help

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said in a news conference that she has ordered relevant agencies to prepare and work to relieve the situation and warned of possible aftershocks. She didn’t mention any casualties.

"I’d like to ask everyone to stay calm and do not panic, but please be careful."

Bangkok City Hall has declared Bangkok an area of disaster.

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