Myanmar earthquake leaves 70 dead
In this photo released by Democratic Voice of Burma, officials stand in front of a building destroyed by an earthquake in Tarlay, Shan state, Myanmar, Friday, March 25, 2011. The Thursday night quake, measured at a magnitude 6.8 by the U.S. Geological Survey, toppled homes in northeastern Myanmar and killed dozens of people. (AP Photo/DVB, Alinyaung)
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — A powerful earthquake that toppled homes in northeastern Myanmar has killed more than 70 people, and there were fears Friday the toll would mount as conditions in more remote areas became known.
The Thursday night quake, measured at a magnitude 6.8 by the U.S. Geological Survey, was centered just north of the town Tachileik in the mountains along the Thai border. It was felt hundreds of miles (kilometers) away in the Thai capital Bangkok and Vietnamese capital Hanoi.
Myanmar state radio announced Friday that 74 people had been killed and 111 injured in the quake, but was updating the total frequently. It said that 390 houses, 14 Buddhist monasteries and nine government buildings were damaged.
An official from the U.N.’s World Food Program said there were many casualties and serious damage in Mong Lin village, five miles (eight kilometers) from Tachileik. State radio said 29 were killed there and 16 injured.
The state-run New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported that 15 houses collapsed in the town of Tarlay, where state radio said 11 were killed and 29 injured. Another U.N. official said a small hospital there was partially damaged as well as a bridge, making it difficult to access the town.
The newspaper said another two people were killed in Tachileik, including a 4-year-old boy. It said six people were injured in the town, which is just across the border from Mae Sai in Thailand’s Chiang Rai province.
In Mae Sai, one woman was killed when a wall fell on her, according to Thai police, but damage was otherwise minimal.
The second U.N. official said medicine would be sent to the affected areas as soon as possible along with an assessment team in cooperation with the Myanmar Red Cross Society.
Both U.N. officials spoke on condition of anonymity because Myanmar’s government frowns on giving unauthorized information to the media.
Most of rural Myanmar, one of Asia’s poorest countries, is underdeveloped, with poor communications and other infrastructure, and minimal rescue and relief capacity. The country’s military government is also usually reluctant to release information about disasters because it is already sensitive to any criticism.
read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/mar/25/powerful-quake-ne-myanmar-kills-more-70/
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