Myanmar Quake Death Toll Hits 1,000 as Rescue Efforts Mount

BANGKOK, March 29 (Reuters) – Myanmar’s military rulers let in hundreds of foreign rescue personnel on Saturday after an earthquake killed over 1,000 people, the deadliest natural disaster to hit the impoverished, war-torn country in years.

Friday’s 7.7 magnitude quake, among the biggest to jolt the Southeast Asian nation in the last century, crippled airports, bridges and highways amid a civil war that has wrecked the economy and displaced millions.

The death toll in Myanmar climbed to 1,002, the military government said on Saturday. In neighbouring Thailand, where the quake rattled buildings and brought down a skyscraper under construction in the capital Bangkok, at least nine people were killed.

Survivors in Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-biggest city, dug with their bare hands on Friday in desperate attempts to save those still trapped, lacking heavy machinery and with authorities absent.

In Bangkok on Saturday, rescue operations continued at the site of the 33-story tower’s collapse, where 47 people were missing or trapped under the rubble – including workers from Myanmar.

The U.S. Geological Service’s predictive modelling estimated Myanmar’s death toll could exceed 10,000 and losses could exceed the country’s annual economic output.

A day after making a rare call for international assistance, Myanmar’s junta chief, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, travelled to hard-hit Mandalay near the epicentre of the quake, which brought down buildings and triggered fires in some areas.

“The Chairman of the State Administration Council instructed authorities to expedite search and rescue efforts and address any urgent needs,” the junta said in a statement on state media, referring to Min Aung Hlaing.

AIRPORTS CLOSED

An initial assessment by Myanmar’s opposition National Unity Government said at least 2,900 buildings, 30 roads and seven bridges had been damaged by the quake.

“Due to significant damage, Naypyitaw and Mandalay international airports are temporarily closed,” said the NUG, which includes remnants of the elected civilian government ousted by the military in a 2021 coup that triggered the civil war.