Massive Quakes Rock Myanmar, Thailand, and China; 154 Dead

A powerful earthquake struck Myanmar on Friday, causing extensive damage across a wide swath of one of the world’s poorest countries and prompting officials to warn that the initial death toll—already above 140—was likely to rise in the coming days.

The full extent of casualties and destruction was not immediately clear. I Photo: Feiza Wikimedia Commons

In neighboring Thailand, at least 10 people died in Bangkok, where a high-rise under construction collapsed, David Rising and Jintamas Saksornchai reported for the Associated Press (AP).

The full extent of casualties and destruction was not immediately clear, particularly in Myanmar, which is embroiled in a civil war and where information is tightly controlled.

“The death toll and injuries are expected to rise,” said Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the head of Myanmar’s military government, as he announced on television that at least 144 people had been killed and 730 others injured in the country.

In Thailand, authorities reported 16 injuries and 101 people missing from three construction sites, including the collapsed high-rise, according to Adam Schreck, Haruka Naga, Jerry Harmer, Grant Peck, and Penny Wang of AP.

The 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck at midday, with its epicenter near Mandalay. Aftershocks followed, one of them measuring a strong 6.4 magnitude.

The U.S. Geological Survey and Germany’s GFZ Center for Geosciences reported that the earthquake occurred at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles), according to preliminary data.

To the northeast, the earthquake was felt in China’s Yunnan and Sichuan provinces, causing damage and injuries in the city of Ruili, near the Myanmar border, according to Chinese media reports. Jamey Keaten, Ken Moritsugu, Edith M. Lederer, Farnoush Amiri, and Jennifer Peltz also contributed to AP’s coverage.