Myanmar earthquake death toll rises to over 2,000; international aid pour in

The earthquake, which struck central Myanmar with a magnitude of 7.7, has resulted in over 2,000 fatalities. International aid is flowing into Myanmar, with contributions from China, India, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and Russia. The United Nations is actively dispatching relief supplies, while the United States has pledged $2 million in aid.

Critical infrastructure - including bridges, highways, airports and railways - across the country has been damaged, slowing humanitarian efforts while the conflict that battered the economy, displaced over 3.5 million people and debilitated the health system, rages on.

Julie Bishop, UN Special Envoy on Myanmar, highlighted, "The earthquake has laid bare the deeper vulnerabilities facing Myanmar’s people and underscored the need for sustained international attention to the broader crisis." She called for unhindered access for aid groups, condemning ongoing military actions.

The earthquake has exacerbated existing crises in a nation already battling civil war. Rescue teams in Mandalay have freed several individuals from collapsed structures, however, the ongoing conflict, which intensified after a 2021 military coup, has hampered access to victims. Arnaud de Baecque from the International Committee of the Red Cross stated, "Access to all victims is an issue ... given the conflict situation. There are a lot of security issues to access some areas across the front lines in particular."

The opposition National Unity Government has implored for direct aid delivery to avoid interference from the ruling junta. "We are in a race against time to save lives," it stated. "Any obstruction to these efforts will have devastating consequences."

Yue Xin, leading the China Search and Rescue Team, expressed commitment to the relief efforts in Mandalay: "It doesn't matter how long we work. The most important thing is that we can bring hope to the local people." With rescue operations ongoing, the priority remains on accessing and aiding those trapped or injured amid the complex socio-political landscape.

Meanwhile, rescue operations in Bangkok intensified after signs of life were detected in the debris of an unfinished skyscraper, three days following a catastrophic earthquake in Southeast Asia. In Bangkok, scanning machines and sniffer dogs have been deployed, with Deputy Governor Tavida Kamolvej emphasising the urgency: "We have to speed up. We're not going to stop even after 72 hours." The collapse of the building has led to 19 deaths in Thailand, with ongoing investigations revealing substandard steel samples at the site.