Myanmar Earthquake Live: Many Feared Dead In Varsity Fire, Say Reports

The WHO said it had triggered its emergency management system in response to Friday’s “huge” earthquake in Myanmar and was mobilising its logistics hub in Dubai to prepare trauma injury supplies.

The World Health Organization is coordinating its earthquake response from its Geneva headquarters “because we see this as a huge event” with “clearly a very, very big threat to life and health”, spokeswoman Margaret Harris told a media briefing.

“We’ve activated our logistics hub to look particularly for trauma supplies and things like external fixators because we expect that there will be many, many injuries that need to be dealt with,” Margaret Harris said.

She said the WHO would also be concentrating on getting in essential medicines, while the health infrastructure in Myanmar itself might be damaged.

About 20 people have died at a major hospital in Myanmar’s capital after a huge earthquake hit the country, causing widespread destruction, a doctor told AFP.

“About 20 people died after they arrived at our hospital so far. Many people were injured,” said the doctor at the 1,000-bed general hospital in Naypyidaw, who requested anonymity.

#WATCH | Delhi | On the Myanmar-Thailand earthquake, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri says, “…we are currently analysing report of damage primarily in Myanmar. We are in touch with the authorities in Myanmar and are also looking at the exact requirements in terms of the… pic.twitter.com/cQd946UoSR

— ANI (@ANI) March 28, 2025

Rows of wounded lay outside the emergency department of the 1,000-bed hospital in Myanmar’s capital Naypyidaw on Friday, some writhing in pain and others in shock after a powerful earthquake.

A stream of casualties were brought to the hospital — some in cars, others in pickups, and others carried on stretchers, their bodies bloody and covered in dust.

“This is a mass casualty area”, a hospital official said, as they ushered journalists away from the treatment area.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday the 27-nation bloc stood ready to help after a strong, deadly earthquake hit Myanmar and Thailand.

“Heartbreaking scenes from Myanmar and Thailand after the devastating earthquake. My thoughts are with the victims and their families,” von der Leyen wrote on X. “Europe’s Copernicus satellites are already helping first responders. We are ready to provide more support.”

After powerful earthquake tremors recorded in Bangkok and in other parts of Thailand, the Embassy is closely monitoring the situation in coordination with the Thai authorities. So far, no untoward incident involving any Indian citizen has been reported.
In case of any emergency,…

— India in Thailand (@IndiainThailand) March 28, 2025

Initial reports on the impact of a 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar on Friday indicate significant damage in the centre of the country, an official from the United Nations Office on Humanitarian Affairs said.

“We are gathering information about the people impacted, infrastructure damage, and immediate humanitarian needs to guide a response,” a spokesperson said.

At least three workers were killed when a 30-storey under-construction tower collapsed in Bangkok after a major earthquake on Friday, the Thai deputy prime minister said.

Phumtham Wechayachai said 81 people were trapped in the rubble after the collapse, which followed the powerful 7.7 magnitude quake centred in Myanmar.

Rows of wounded lay outside the emergency department of the 1,000-bed hospital in Myanmar’s capital Naypyidaw, some writhing in pain and others in shock after a powerful earthquake.

A stream of casualties were brought to the hospital — some in cars, others in pickups, and others carried on stretchers, their bodies bloody and covered in dust.

“This is a mass casualty area”, a hospital official said, as they ushered journalists away from the treatment area.

The hospital’s emergency department was itself heavily damaged, a car crushed under the heavy concrete of its fallen entrance.

People were seen sitting stunned with their head in their hands, blood caking their faces and limbs.

Myanmar’s ruling junta made a rare request for international humanitarian aid and declared a state of emergency across six regions after a powerful quake hit the country.

AFP reporters saw junta chief Min Aung Hlaing arrive at a hospital in Naypyidaw where wounded were being treated after the 7.7-magnitude quake hit central Myanmar.

The Stock Exchange of Thailand suspended all trading activities for the afternoon session after a strong earthquake struck neighbouring Myanmar, the tremors of which were felt in Thailand’s capital, Bangkok.

“Following the earthquake incident, the Stock Exchange of Thailand hereby announces the immediate suspension of all trading activities,” the bourse operator said on its website.

“The closure affects all markets, including SET, the Market for Alternative Investment (MAI), and the Thailand Futures Exchange (TFEX), for today’s afternoon session.”

In the Thai capital of Bangkok, a 30-storey building under construction collapsed, trapping 43 workers, police and medics said.

The massive building intended for government offices was reduced to a tangle of rubble and twisted metal in seconds, footage shared on social media showed.

Across the border in Myanmar, a team of AFP journalists were at the National Museum in Naypyidaw when the earthquake struck.

Pieces fell from the ceiling as the building began shaking. Uniformed staff ran outside, some trembling and tearful, others grabbing cellphones to try to contact loved ones. 

Roads nearby were buckled and broken by the tremors and the route to one of the city’s biggest hospitals was jammed with traffic.

A powerful earthquake rattled Myanmar and neighbouring Thailand, trapping dozens of workers in a collapsed under-construction skyscraper in Bangkok where a state of emergency was declared.

The 7.7-magnitude tremor hit northwest of the city of Sagaing on Friday afternoon at a shallow depth, the United States Geological Survey said. A 6.4-magnitude aftershock hit the same area minutes later.