A POWERFUL earthquake struck Myanmar on Friday, with tremors felt in neighbouring Thailand, causing a 30-storey building under construction to collapse in Bangkok. Dozens of workers were trapped, and authorities declared a state of emergency.
The 7.7-magnitude quake was recorded northwest of Sagaing in Myanmar in the afternoon at a shallow depth, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). A 6.4-magnitude aftershock followed shortly after in the same region.
In Bangkok, the collapse of the under-construction government office building trapped 43 workers, police and medics said. Footage on social media showed the structure reduced to rubble and twisted metal.
"When I arrived to inspect the site, I heard people calling for help, saying help me," Worapat Sukthai, deputy police chief of Bang Sue district, told AFP.
"We estimate that hundreds of people are injured but we are still determining the number of casualties," he added.
In Myanmar, an AFP team was at the National Museum in Naypyidaw when the quake hit. Pieces of the ceiling fell as the building shook, and uniformed staff rushed outside, some in distress and others using their phones to check on relatives.
Nearby roads cracked due to the tremors, and traffic built up on routes leading to one of the city's main hospitals. The hospital was declared a "mass casualty area" after the quake, officials said.
An ambulance made its way through the jammed streets, with a paramedic shouting, "Cars, move aside so the ambulance can get through."
Patients were being treated outside the 1,000-bed hospital, with intravenous drips hanging from gurneys. Some were in pain, while others lay still as relatives stayed close.
Tremors were felt in various locations across Myanmar and Thailand.
"I heard it, and I was sleeping in the house. I ran as far as I could in my pyjamas out of the building," said Duangjai, a resident of Chiang Mai, a popular tourist city in northern Thailand.
Sai, a 76-year-old Chiang Mai resident, was working at a minimart when the shop started shaking.
"I quickly rushed out of the shop along with other customers," he said. "This is the strongest tremor I’ve experienced in my life."
Buildings damaged
The earthquake led to the suspension of metro and light rail services in Bangkok. Thai prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra declared a state of emergency and cut short an official visit to Phuket to hold an "urgent meeting" about the situation, she posted on X.
In China’s southwest Yunnan province, tremors were also felt, with Beijing’s quake agency measuring the jolt at 7.9 magnitude.
Myanmar is prone to earthquakes, with the Sagaing Fault running through the country. The USGS recorded six strong quakes of 7.0 magnitude or more in the region between 1930 and 1956.
A 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar’s ancient capital Bagan in 2016, killing three people and damaging temples at the tourist site.
Myanmar’s rapid urban development, combined with weak infrastructure and poor planning, has made its cities more vulnerable to disasters, experts say. The country also has a strained healthcare system, especially in rural areas.
(With inputs from AFP)
Sunder Katwala
