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Devastating Earthquake in Myanmar: Rescue Efforts Hampered by Aftershocks and Conflict
MANDALAY, Myanmar – As rescue personnel continued to extract survivors from the debris following a powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Myanmar on Friday, a series of aftershocks rattled Mandalay, the nation’s second-largest city and the quake’s epicenter, on Sunday. Terrified residents fled into the streets as the ground trembled once more, compounding the ongoing crisis.
Humanitarian Crisis Deepens in Earthquake-Struck Myanmar
Already reeling from four years of brutal civil conflict, Myanmar, one of the world’s most impoverished nations, now confronts a severe humanitarian crisis. The powerful earthquake has tragically claimed at least 1,600 lives, with the number expected to rise. Aid efforts are struggling to reach affected populations due to severely damaged roads and shattered infrastructure.
Military Junta Actions Exacerbate Disaster
Compounding the devastation, Myanmar’s ruling military junta has persisted with aerial bombardments amidst the natural disaster, intertwining the ongoing civil war with the earthquake’s impact and escalating the crisis.
Nation’s Infrastructure Crippled
The seismic event on Friday has critically impaired essential services across the nation, rendering significant portions of roadways impassable. Hospitals are overwhelmed, facing critical shortages of essential medicines and blood supplies.
Aid Delivery Stalled by Damaged Infrastructure
Severely compromised roads and extensive rubble, particularly on routes connecting Mandalay to the capital, Naypyidaw, and Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, are significantly impeding the delivery of critical assistance to the hardest-hit regions. The United Nations humanitarian aid office also reported “telecommunications and internet disruptions” further obstructing aid coordination.
Urgent Needs and Extensive Damage Highlighted by UN
The UN emphasized that immediate requirements include vital supplies such as clothing, blankets, kitchen utensils, temporary shelters, potable water, sanitation and hygiene provisions, and food. The organization further noted, “Hospital and health facilities have suffered extensive damage or destruction.”
Desperate Search for Survivors Continues
As aid trickles into the affected areas, local residents and rescue teams are engaged in desperate efforts, sifting through the wreckage in search of any remaining survivors.
International Rescue Teams Join Efforts
Video footage verified by Reuters showed Chinese rescue personnel working tirelessly through the night in Naypyidaw. Employing hand tools and shovels, they meticulously excavated the debris of a collapsed structure, successfully extracting an elderly individual, barely conscious, from the rubble many hours after the initial quake.
Sky Villa Condominium Collapse: Dozens Trapped
At the Sky Villa Condominium complex in Mandalay, which tragically collapsed and trapped numerous individuals, rescuers successfully extricated a weeping woman from the debris. According to reports from the BBC’s Burmese service, 29 individuals have been rescued from the site, while nine bodies have been recovered.
Thousands Displaced and Fearful
“Thousands of people are spending nights outdoors or in open spaces due to damage to their homes or fearing further quakes,” the UN stated in a report released on Saturday.
International Aid Arrives
Several nations have pledged and initiated assistance to Myanmar in response to the emergency. Russia has dispatched two aircraft carrying 120 rescuers and essential supplies, as reported by the state news agency TASS. Additionally, the Chinese embassy announced via Facebook the deployment of a 37-person team to Yangon, equipped with medicine and equipment for locating survivors.
Regional Support Underway
Teams from India, Singapore, and Thailand are also actively engaged in rescue and aid operations within the country, according to Reuters reports.
Thailand Earthquake Aftermath
In neighboring Thailand, while the impact was less severe, several fatalities have been reported, and dozens remain unaccounted for. Drones are being utilized to survey the immense debris field of what was once a 30-story building.
Hopes Diminish Amidst Rescue Challenges in Thailand
The Governor of Bangkok, Chadchart Sittipunt, indicated on Sunday morning that faint signs of life were still being detected within the wreckage in Thailand. However, impending rainfall threatens to impede ongoing rescue efforts. More than 48 hours after the building’s collapse, relatives of those trapped remain at the site, anxiously awaiting news and hoping for the safe recovery of their loved ones.
Myanmar Bears Brunt of Disaster Amidst Existing Crises
However, Myanmar has undeniably suffered the most devastating impact of this natural disaster, adding to the pre-existing crises the nation was facing even before the earthquake struck.
Humanitarian Needs Widespread
The International Rescue Committee estimates that over 19 million individuals in Myanmar were already in urgent need of humanitarian aid prior to the quake, a number now tragically exacerbated.
Food Insecurity and Healthcare Access Concerns
The World Food Programme reports that widespread food insecurity in Myanmar affects 15.2 million people. Last year, the UN Security Council voiced serious concerns regarding “the denial of access to medicine and medical care” following documented attacks on healthcare facilities and blockades hindering medicine distribution.
Political Instability and Ongoing Conflict
The current military regime in Myanmar seized power in a coup four years prior, deposing Aung San Suu Kyi, the democratically-elected leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient. Since the coup, the nation has been embroiled in civil war, with the junta engaged in suppressing armed rebel groups, including the National Unity Government (NUG), Myanmar’s government in exile.
Ceasefire Calls Amidst Continued Military Action
On Saturday, the NUG declared a two-week suspension of “offensive military operations, except for defensive actions” in earthquake-affected regions. However, the military junta has not reciprocated this ceasefire. BBC Burmese reported that a reported seven individuals were killed in an air strike in Naungcho, northern Shan state, less than three hours after the initial earthquake.
Continued Bombings Reported Near Earthquake Epicenter
Pro-democracy rebel groups engaged in conflict against the military regime also reported aerial bombardments in Chang-U township in northwest Saigang, an area near the earthquake’s epicenter, according to BBC reports.
UN Special Rapporteur Calls for Ceasefire and Aid Access
Tom Andrews, the UN Special Rapporteur for Myanmar, has urgently called for an “immediate ceasefire” and a halt to military conscription. “Aid workers should not have to fear arrest and there should be no obstructions to aid getting to where it is most needed,” he stated on Sunday via social media, emphasizing, “Every second counts.”
Ongoing Conflict Shadows Earthquake Response
Tragically, aerial bombardments continue to plague Myanmar, a nation still grappling with the immense loss of life from the devastating earthquake and the compounding crises it faces.