Myanmar earthquake death toll rises to more than 1,000

By Faith Barbara N Ruhinda updated at 14:16 EAT on Saturday 29 March 2025

The search and rescue is still ongoing. It’s very difficult now to validate any figure, and we know that it will continue to increase and (that) many of these eighteen million people are now without safe shelter, access to clean water, reliable health care.”

A growing number of international players have been pitching in for the rescue of those trapped in the Bangkok building collapse.

In the last few minutes I’ve seen members of China’s Blue Sky Rescue team – the country’s largest volunteer rescue team – enter the site.

Meanwhile, my colleague Nick spoke to US army officers emerging from the rescue site.

“We are just trying to bring as many resources as we can to help out our allied partner… we are just trying to get a handle on it right now,” one said.

A Red Cross official tells news outlet Agency France-Presse that more than 90 people could be trapped in the collapsed remains of an apartment block in Mandalay, Myanmar.

In a recent update, Myanmar’s military council says more than 1,500 houses have been damaged in Mandalay alone.

Among the buildings that collapsed in Kyaukse, in the Mandalay region, was the West Mye Mye Kyi pre-school.

Rescue workers said that the bodies of 12 preschool children and a teacher were found this morning.

More are said to be trapped inside the collapsed building, and chances of survival become bleaker with time.

There were unconfirmed reports that around 50 children and six teachers were missing after the building collapsed.

“The approximate number of people in the school is 50, but we only have a list of the number of people who were evacuated. We have only evacuated 13 bodies,” said a member of the rescue team.

Kyaukse Dam administration, the Red Cross, and social assistance groups have been helping in the rescue. In Kyaukse town, houses and shops also collapsed due to the earthquake.

In the last few minutes there’s been a flurry of activity at the site of a collapsed building in Bangkok, where 100 people are still unaccounted for, with workers putting up white tents and sheets.

It remains unclear what we are expecting, but Thai media are reporting three survivors have been found in a shaft amid the rubble.

The death toll in Myanmar has risen to 1007, the country’s military council says, while the number of injured has gone up to 2,389, with 30 missing.

The junta also said that 1,591 houses have been damaged in Mandalay region, the epicentre of the earthquake.

Myanmar’s recent powerful quake has left millions of people facing hours of power outages.

Today, the corporation which oversaw the distribution of power to the most populous city, Yangon Electricity Supply Corporation (YESC), has announced that residents will only get four hours of electricity each day.

This is due to the damage to infrastructure, as the electricity company is trying to generate and distribute power from gas turbines before the power grid can connect to it.

Residents of Mandalay and Yangon reported that there was a complete power outage and telephone lines were down after the earthquake.

In Mandalay, it is not easy to restore electricity and there may be a major electricity issue over the next few days

Several solemn-faced people – mostly women – have shown up to lodge their details. Many of them are teary, clearly consumed by worry for their missing loved ones.

Occasionally, they break into sobs, overcome with emotion.

On a whiteboard propped up behind the desk, officials are keeping track of some grim numbers. As of this morning, 96 are missing, while eight are confirmed dead and eight are injured.

In Thailand, the country’s deputy prime minister has been speaking to reporters after touring the site of a collapsed high-rise building in Bangkok.

In a press conference delivered in both Thai and English, he said the authorities believe that there are now approximately 50 people unaccounted for.

“We always have hope. We work tirelessly and are still working around the clock to make sure that everybody is safe,” Anutin Charnweerakul told reporters.

He also revealed that offers for help have come in from Thailand’s neighbouring countries and overseas.

“We have enough manpower and sufficient resources, but if we are offered more help especially technological help, of course we would gladly accept”.

Charnweerakul was also quizzed about why this particular building collapsed. He told reporters that he has given investigators seven days to report back on their findings.

In 2011, it appeared to move away from this and free elections were held four years later, which Aung San Suu Kyi won.

Democratic hopes were dashed in 2021, when she and her government were overthrown by a coup led by General Min Aung Hlaing.

He detained and charged Ms Suu Kyi and other members of her government, making allegations of widespread fraud in a vote held months earlier, when her National League for Democracy party won more than 80% of the ballot.

The coup triggered huge protests, with thousands taking to the streets daily, demanding the restoration of civilian rule. Violence quickly escalated between civilians and the military, with the army responding with brutal force, using tear gas and rubber bullets against crowds.

Rights groups believe hundreds of people died and thousands were injured in the crackdown.

The military council has continued airstrikes and drone attacks after the earthquake in Myanmar, including one in the Sagaing region which has seen extensive damage and casualties from the quake.

The other two strikes were at Ley Wah, in Kayin state, near the Karen National Union headquarters, and at Pyu in the Bago Region.

Myanmar’s military regime says it has opened a temporary hospital and relief camp at Mandalay Airport.

How many people it can treat and care for has not been specified.

The airport is not currently functional, with the runways damaged during the earthquake, but the military says it is working to resume flights.

Elsewhere, Airports of Thailand has issued a statement says that operations at six of its airports, including those in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hat Yai, Chiang Rai and Phuket have returned to normal services.

The Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) says it will support relief operations in Myanmar and Thailand.

The 10-member body, which includes Myanmar and Thailand, says it recognises the urgent need for humanitarian assistance after the earthquake “resulted in significant loss of life, injuries, and widespread destruction”.

It says it will “work closely to coordinate humanitarian assistance, support and facilitate relief operations, and ensure timely and effective humanitarian response”.

The other members of Asean are Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, and the Philippines.

In Mandalay, rescue workers are attempting to reach seven people trapped under a high-rise building.

One person involved with the effort says they rescued 50 people from this building overnight.

It’s now been more than 24 hours since the earthquake close to Myanmar’s second-largest city – causing widespread damage.

“We are still trying to pull out the rest of the trapped people, but we need large machines. They are still shouting, and we can still hear their voices, but we can’t know where they are,” the rescue worker says.

“If we can get the support of those big machines, we can remove the damage and then pull out the trapped people,” they add.

“We have responded to several building collapses before, but this is one of the largest we’ve encountered. The number of injured and trapped victims is higher than in previous cases,” Pakkapol Metheepakdi says.

Despite continuous efforts, the unstable structure and deep layers of rubble have significantly slowed down operations.

“Last night we estimated that 98 people were missing,” he says, but adds “we still don’t know exactly how many are trapped.”

Special sound locating equipment has been used to locate the survivors who are calling for help by knocking or shouting, but reaching them remains a challenge.

Metheepakdi describes a man who had been injured while fleeing the collapse who spent the night waiting for his trapped friend.

“His eyes were filled with sorrow. He was waiting, hoping,” he says. “He was here all night but disappeared this morning. We don’t know where he went, but he was clearly waiting for his friend to be rescued.”

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