A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake has struck central Myanmar (Burma), sending shockwaves across the region and causing significant damage in both Burma and neighboring Thailand.
The midday quake caused buildings to collapse, killed many people, and caused widespread panic as residents scrambled for safety. News outlets from around the world have reported on the disaster, painting a grim picture of its immediate aftermath.
According to Fox News, the earthquake’s epicenter was located in Myanmar, with tremors felt strongly across nearly every region of Thailand.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported the quake’s depth at a shallow 6.2 miles, amplifying its destructive potential. In Bangkok, Thailand’s capital, high-rise buildings swayed, rooftop pools overflowed, and debris rained down onto the streets below.
Fox News described scenes of chaos as people fled collapsing structures, with rescuers later seen working through the rubble in affected areas.
The Associated Press (AP) provided further details, confirming that a high-rise building under construction in Bangkok collapsed entirely due to the tremors.
Emergency responders reported finding at least two fatalities in the wreckage, though the full extent of casualties remains unclear as rescue efforts continue.
AP also noted that Myanmar’s government declared a state of emergency in six regions and states, signaling the severity of the situation in the country where the quake originated.
Reuters highlighted the panic in Bangkok, where hundreds of people poured out of buildings as the ground shook.
The news agency reported that the earthquake struck near the city of Mandalay in central Myanmar, a culturally and historically significant area.
Social media clips shared from Bangkok showed water splashing out of rooftop swimming pools, underscoring the intensity of the tremors felt hundreds of miles from the epicenter.
The BBC added that strong tremors were not only limited to Thailand but also felt in Laos, India, and China, indicating the quake’s far-reaching impact. The outlet’s live updates emphasized the unfolding crisis in Bangkok, where multiple building collapses were reported alongside the ongoing efforts to assess damage in Myanmar’s more rural and less accessible regions.
Posts on X echoed these reports, with users sharing real-time accounts of the disaster.
One post claimed that hundreds of homes had collapsed across various Myanmar cities, while another cited USGS predictions of potentially thousands of deaths—a sobering estimate that has yet to be officially confirmed.
Videos circulating on the platform showed scenes of destruction in Bangkok, including damaged buildings and terrified residents fleeing to safety.
The earthquake’s shallow depth and high magnitude explain the widespread devastation.
Shallow quakes tend to cause more surface damage, and the 7.7 magnitude places this event among the most powerful to hit the region in recent years.
As rescue operations continue and authorities work to assess the full scope of the disaster, the international community watches closely, bracing for updates on the human and structural toll.
