Rescue workers pull a survivor from the rubble of an earthquake in Mandalay, Myanmar, yesterday. Photo: Reuters
The death toll in Myanmar has risen to 2,056. The number of injured people is 3,900. 270 people are still missing. In such a situation, a week of national mourning has been declared in the country.
This information was announced by the country’s junta government on Monday. As part of the national mourning, the national flag will be flown at half-mast in the country until April 6.
A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar last Friday. The tremor was felt in Thailand and seven other neighboring countries. In Thailand, there were also deaths and casualties due to the collapse of multi-storey buildings.
Among the areas most affected by the earthquake in Myanmar is Mandalay, the country’s second largest city. The city is home to 1.7 million people. The earthquake has caused such devastation that rescue and emergency assistance activities have been hampered. The government’s announcement of this mourning came after such a situation came to light there. Mandalay residents have been living in the open air on the streets day and night since Friday.
UN appeal
The BBC reports that aid agencies say the situation in Myanmar, which has been torn apart by civil war, is getting worse after the earthquake. The streets are filled with the stench of corpses and hospitals are in ruins. In such a situation, the United Nations has appealed for $8 million in emergency funding for Myanmar.
4 rescued alive after 60 hours
Four people have been pulled alive from the rubble of a collapsed school building in Myanmar’s Sagaing region, nearly 60 hours after an earthquake struck, the country’s fire service said on Sunday.
