Myanmar earthquake death toll rises to over 1,640 with dozens missing in Bangkok

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It’s now just past 1 am in Myanmar, and rescue efforts are still underway. We’ll be back with more updates tomorrow.

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said: ‘Damage to the Yangon/Naypyidaw/Mandalay expressway led to service disruptions, with cracks and surface distortions forcing highway buses to halt operations.’

Ireland has donated six million euros to help respond to the “devastating” earthquake which has claimed more than 1,600 lives in Myanmar.

The 7.7 magnitude earthquake, with an epicentre near Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city, struck at midday and was followed 12 minutes later by a 6.4 magnitude aftershock.

This complicated rescue efforts and has raised fears of further casualties.

• On 28 March, two powerful earthquakes struck central Myanmar, with epicentres near Mandalay and Sagaing cities.
  A number of aftershocks have since been reported.
• Initial field reports indicate that upwards of 1,000 people have died, over 2,200 people have been injured and more than 200 people remain missing as search and rescue operations continue.
• The UN and humanitarian partners are mobilizing to support emergency response efforts and stand ready to assist all affected communities.
• The Emergency Relief Coordinator has allocated an initial US$5 million for life-saving assistance in Myanmar.
• Coordination efforts are underway to conduct rapid needs assessments and scale up emergency response.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC show the earthquake toppled the air traffic control tower at Myanmar’s Naypyitaw International Airport.

The photos taken on Saturday show the tower toppled over as if sheered from its base.

Debris lay scattered from the top of the tower, which controlled all air traffic in the capital of Myanmar.

It was not immediately clear if there had been any injuries in the collapse, though the tower would have had staff inside of it at the time of the earthquake on Friday.

It likely also stopped air traffic into the international airport, given all electronics and radar would have been routed into the tower for controllers.

An 11th person has died in Thailand. 82 people are still missing.

The confirmed death toll from a devastating earthquake rose to more than 1,600, according to state television in Myanmar.

The new total of 1,644 is a sharp rise over the 1,002 total announced just hours earlier, underlining the difficulty of confirming casualties over a widespread region and the likelihood that the numbers will continue to grow from Friday’s 7.7 magnitude quake.

The number of injured increased to 3,408, while the missing figure rose to 139.

Mandalay, a city of around 1.5 million people, was especially shaken by the quake.

Between the ruins of roads and mosques, Agence France-Presse (AFP) journalists have reported dozens of people getting ready to sleep on the streets, fearful that damaged buildings may collapse on them.

The earthquake has reduced countless centuries-old Buddhist monasteries, mosques, pagodas and minarets to rubble.

Myanmar is a deeply Buddhist nation, with some 48 million worshippers.

The death toll in Myanmar now stands at 1,644 and 3,408 people are injured, according to the Myanmar military.

A 37-member team from the Chinese province of Yunnan reached the city of Yangon, Myanmar, early Saturday with earthquake detectors, drones and other supplies, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Russia’s emergencies ministry dispatched two planes carrying 120 rescuers and supplies, according to a report from the Russian state news agency Tass.

India sent a search and rescue team and a medical team as well as provisions, while Malaysia’s foreign ministry said the country will send 50 people on Sunday to help identify and provide aid to the worst-hit areas.

The United Nations’ emergency relief coordinator made an initial allocation of £3.86 million for recovery efforts in the area as the international body works to recover from massive US funding cuts to the region.

Myanmar, which is still in the grips of a brutal civil war, is continuing to suffer from military strikes.

In areas where a state of emergency was declared, airstrikes have been reported by pro-democracy militia groups.

The King has sent a message of condolence after the deadly earthquake in Myanmar, as he continues to work while recuperating following his short stay in hospital.

In a message addressed to ‘the people of Myanmar’ and posted on social media, Charles said: ‘My wife and I were most dreadfully shocked and saddened to learn of the devastating earthquake in Myanmar, with its tragic loss of life and appalling damage to homes, buildings and livelihoods, not to mention the destruction of sacred pagodas, monasteries and other places of worship.

‘I know that the people of Myanmar continue to endure so much hardship and tragedy in your lives, and I have long admired your extraordinary resilience and spirit.

‘At this most difficult and heartbreaking of times, my wife and I send our deepest possible sympathy to all those who have suffered the profound tragedy of losing their loved ones, their homes and their precious livelihoods.’

Locals in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, said multiple aftershocks rocked the country just after 8 am UK time.

More than 1,000 people are confirmed to be dead.

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

In Mandalay, the earthquake damaged part of the former royal palace and buildings, according to videos and photos released on 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 earthquake damaged religious shrines, sending parts toppling to the ground.

Metro will be back tomorrow morning to provide further updates on the earthquakes in Myanmar and Thailand.