Myanmar earthquake survivors describe horror

The Burmese city of Mandalay has become the “scene of a tragedy”, a survivor of the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that hit the center of Myanmar on Friday told the BBC.

“It’s like a ruined city. Some are still stuck under rubble,” she said. “It was so serious. So serious that I never saw anything trembling like that.”

“There are so many people injured in the general hospital,” she added, describing damage across the city.

Another woman revealed how she could hear the voices of trapped people inside a hotel that had collapsed.

“I hear mothers crying, friends, because their children are always inside the building. It is desperate to look,” said the woman – a teacher -.

“This earthquake is a total disaster,” she continued. “We need help.”

According to official figures, at least 144 people lost their lives in Myanmar, with more than 700 injured.

But constituting a clear image of what is happening exactly in the Southeast Asian nation is not easy.

Access has been limited since 2021, when the army took power after a coup. Foreign journalists are rarely allowed to enter officially due to a lack of press freedom.

Many people who spoke to the BBC and other agencies have not given their names for security reasons.

A resident of Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar, told the BBC World Service Newsday program that the Shakes were “quite intense” and lasted about four minutes.

The man, who wanted to remain anonymous for security reasons, described the awakening of a nap in the building trembling violently.

“It lasted about three to four minutes,” he said. “I received messages from friends and I realized that it was not only in Yangon, but also many places across the country.”

The tremors were so strong that they felt far beyond the borders of Myanmar – in China and Thailand.

In Mandalay, the second largest city in Myanmar, social media images have shown collapsed buildings, including parts of the historic royal palace.

A 90 -year -old bridge collapsed, while the main highway sections connecting Yangon to the city were torn.

Myanmar officials declared a “mass victim zone” at the general hospital of Nay Pyi Taw in the country’s capital, Where patients are on Gurneys outside, intravenous drops suspended from makeshift stands.

The military junta also made a rare call for international aid, declaring a state of emergency in six regions.

“We want the international community to send humanitarian aid as soon as possible,” said Junta chief, Min Aung Hlaing.

Shin Thant Sanar, a Myanmar student at the University of Sheffield, told the BBC that she had awakened a frantic call from her mother. Panic filled her mother’s voice as she said that the buildings had collapsed around her.

“A few moments later, my aunt entered, crying; she had lost everything. It was a heartbreaking moment, aggravated when the telephone lines were cut,” said the student.

None of his family was injured, “but destruction is overwhelming,” she said.

“As it was Friday prayer time, I learned that many people were inside the mosques that also collapsed, injuring a lot and causing deaths.

“The streets and buildings that I grew up are now unrecognizable.”

Additional report by James Kelly, Andrée Massiah, Bernadette McCague and Liz Roberts