A powerful earthquake struck central Myanmar on Friday, causing widespread damage in Mandalay, the country’s second-largest city, while in neighboring Thailand, workers were trapped following the collapse of a high-rise building under construction.
The quake caused several buildings to collapse in Mandalay, with witnesses reporting chaotic scenes and people rushing out of buildings in panic. There were no immediate reports of casualties
As per media reports, The earthquake’s epicenter was located about 17.2 km from Mandalay, which has a population of 1.5 million. Following the initial tremor, a strong aftershock hit the region. Social media posts showed collapsed buildings and debris across the streets of Mandalay. One witness described seeing a five-story building collapse while others were trapped inside a tea shop.
In Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon, people fled buildings as tremors were also felt there. In Bangkok, people ran onto the streets, with hotel guests in bathrobes and swimming costumes joining the crowds. Some office towers in the Thai capital swayed for at least two minutes, causing panic and sending workers to emergency exits.
Thailand’s Department of Disaster Preventaion said the quake was felt in almost all regions of the country. Thai authorities have declared a state of emergency in Bangkok, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on Friday after the city was hit by a major earthquake centred in Myanmar.
As per the Economic Times, a 30-storey skyscraper under construction for government offices collapsed in Bangkok, trapping 43 workers. The building in the north of the Thai capital was reduced to a tangle of rubble and twisted metal in seconds.
