Earthquake compounds Myanmar's humanitarian crisis as the death toll passes 1,700
BANGKOK — The massive earthquake in Myanmar killed several hundred Muslims praying at mosques during the holy month of Ramadan and 270 Buddhist monks crushed by a collapsing monastery, rescuers and an activist group said Monday as the overall death toll passed 1,700.
The quake could exacerbate hunger and disease outbreaks in a country that was already one of the world's most challenging places for humanitarian organizations to operate because of civil war, warned aid groups and the United Nations.
With access difficult, the true death toll is unknown.
The magnitude 7.7 quake hit Friday, with the epicenter near Myanmar's second-largest city of Mandalay. It damaged the city's airport, buckled roads and collapsed hundreds of buildings along a wide swath down the country's center.
Relief efforts are further hampered by power outages, fuel shortages and spotty communications. A lack of heavy machinery has slowed search-and-rescue operations, forcing many to search for survivors by hand in daily temperatures above 104 degrees Fahrenheit.
Rescue workers at Mandalay's collapsed U Hla Thein monastery said they were still searching for about 150 of the dead monks.
Some 700 Muslim worshippers attending Friday prayers were killed when mosques collapsed, said Tun Kyi, a member of the steering committee of the Spring Revolution Myanmar Muslim Network. He said some 60 mosques were damaged or destroyed. Videos posted on the Irrawaddy online news site showed several mosques toppling.
It was not clear whether those numbers were already included in the official death toll. Government spokesman Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun told state-run MRTV that more than 1,700 people had been found dead, 3,400 had been injured and more than 300 were missing.
The United Nations' Myanmar country team called for unimpeded access for aid teams.
'Even before this earthquake, nearly 20 million people in Myanmar were in need of humanitarian assistance,' said Marcoluigi Corsi, the U.N. resident and humanitarian coordinator.
'We're really not clear on the scale of the destruction at this stage,' Lauren Ellery, deputy director of programs in Myanmar for the International Rescue Committee, told the Associated Press. 'They were talking about a town near Mandalay where 80% of the buildings were reportedly collapsed, but it wasn't in the news because telecommunications have been slow.'
Groups the IRC works with have reported that some places are cut off by landslides, she said.
The World Health Organization said it has reports of three hospitals destroyed and 22 partially damaged in the region.
'There is an urgent need for trauma and surgical care, blood transfusion supplies, anesthetics, essential medicines and mental health support,' it said.
An artificial intelligence analysis of satellite images of Mandalay by Microsoft's AI for Good Lab showed 515 buildings with 80% to 100% damage and 1,524 more with 20% to 80% damage. It was not clear what percentage of the city's buildings that represented.
Rescue efforts are also complicated by the civil war. In 2021, the military seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking what has turned into significant armed resistance.
While one group has declared a partial unilateral ceasefire, the government and other armed groups have not stopped fighting.
Government forces have lost control of much of Myanmar, and many places were dangerous or impossible for aid groups to reach even before the quake. More than 3 million people have been displaced by the fighting, according to the U.N.
Ellery with the International Rescue Committee noted that the area worst hit by the earthquake was seriously damaged by flooding last year, and many displaced people sought refuge there.
Since the earthquake, many people have been sleeping outside, either because homes were destroyed or out of fear of aftershocks.
Monsoon rains start in May and finding people shelter will be a major challenge, she said.
International rescue teams from several countries are on the scene, including from Russia, China, India and several Southeast Asian countries.
On Monday, an Indian team jackhammered through slabs of fallen concrete at one site in Mandalay. They could be seen bringing out one body.
The European Union, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and others have announced millions of dollars in aid.
Despite massive cuts and firings at the U.S. Agency for International Development — the body tasked with delivering humanitarian assistance overseas — the U.S. Embassy said a team of experts was on its way to Myanmar. The embassy said it would provide up to $2 million through local organizations.
A small number of U.S. military personnel were sent to assist in Bangkok, where the earthquake killed at least 18 people, many at a construction site where a partially built high-rise collapsed. An additional 33 have been reported injured and 78 missing, primarily at the construction site near the popular Chatuchak market.
On Monday, heavy equipment was temporarily shut down at the site and authorities urged onlookers to be silent as they used machines to try to detect signs of life.
Bangkok Gov. Chadchart Sittipunt told reporters that signs had been detected Sunday night, though experts could not determine whether it had been machine error.
Watching the crews at work, Naruemon Thonglek said she had 'made some peace' with the fact that her partner and five friends there were unlikely to be found alive.
'A part of me still hope they will survive,' she said.
Rising writes for the Associated Press. AP journalists Jerry Harmer and Jintamas Saksornchai in Bangkok, and Jon Gambrell in Dubai contributed to this report.
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