The USGS’s predictive modeling estimated the death toll could exceed 10,000 people and that losses could be greater than the value of the country’s GDP.
More than 1,000 people have been killed in Burma after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the country on Friday.
The death toll in Burma (also known as Myanmar) jumped to 1,002 with 2,376 injured and 30 others missing, the military government said in a statement on Saturday, up sharply from the 144 dead that state media reported on Friday.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the epicenter of the earthquake—which was 6.2 miles deep—was close to the city of Mandalay in Burma.
A dramatic video circulating on social media shows a high-rise building in Bangkok collapsing in a cloud of dust as construction workers run for their lives. Thai authorities said nine people had died and 101 were missing in Bangkok, mostly laborers trapped in the rubble of the collapsed tower.
The high-rise building was being built for the auditor general of the Thai government by the China Railway Construction Corporation.
The USGS’s predictive modeling estimated the death toll could exceed 10,000 people in Burma, and that losses could be greater than the value of the country’s gross domestic product.
In Burma, the military government has declared a state of emergency in six regions and states, including Mandalay and the capital, Naypyidaw.
It said on the Telegram messaging app, “The state will make inquiries on the situation quickly and conduct rescue operations along with providing humanitarian aid.”
The Red Cross said: “Initial reports from the ground suggest the earthquake has caused significant damage. Information on humanitarian needs is still being gathered.”
The Burmese government’s spokesman, Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, told state-run MRTV television channel that blood was in high demand in hospitals in Mandalay, Sagaing, and Naypyidaw.
The president of the European Commission wrote on X: “Heartbreaking scenes from Myanmar and Thailand after the devastating earthquake. My thoughts are with the victims & their families. Europe’s Copernicus satellites are already helping first responders. We are ready to provide more support. We stand with you in full solidarity.”
Chinese media reported that the earthquake was felt in Yunnan and Sichuan provinces.
Burma’s second biggest city, Mandalay, was close to the epicenter, and a local resident, Htet Naing Oo, said several people had been trapped inside a tea shop which had collapsed.
She said, “We couldn’t go in. The situation is very bad.”
Photographs and videos posted on Facebook showed widespread damage in Mandalay.
Most houses in Mandalay are low-rise structures.
