Over 4 400 dead after deadliest earthquake in 95 years strikes Myanmar
The deadliest earthquake in 95 years hit Myanmar on Friday, March 28, 2025, leaving over 4 390 fatalities and injuring over 5 000 people in the country. The M7.7 quake was powerful enough to send tremors as far as Thailand, where at least 18 people lost their lives, 68 were injured, and about 80 remain missing. The impact was made worse when an M6.7 aftershock hit the same region just minutes later.
Over 2 600 people have been reported dead in Myanmar after a devastating M7.7 struck the country on Friday, March 28. More than 3 400 people have been injured, while hundreds remain missing. As reports from rural areas continue to arrive, the total number of casualties is expected to increase.
Myanmar’s authorities made a rare request for international humanitarian aid and declared a state of emergency across six of the worst-hit regions — Sagaing, Mandalay, Magway, northeastern Shan State, Naypyidaw, and Bago.
More than 800 people were reported dead in the Mandalay, located roughly 17 km (11 miles) west-northwest of the quake’s epicenter.
The National Unity Government of Myanmar said at least 2 970 residential buildings, 150 religious buildings, 30 roads, and 7 bridges were badly damaged or destroyed across the country.
In Zabuthiri Township, near Naypyidaw, more than 200 deaths were reported; a number of the people killed were civil servants who died when their apartments collapsed.
Search and rescue teams reported 100 fatalities in the village of Bone Oe. Over 40 people died in Yemethin, while at least 60 were injured. Meanwhile, 30 fatalities were reported in Kyaukse, along with 732 injuries.
A building collapsed in Pyigyidagun Township, claiming 8 lives, while a car accessory store in the same town collapsed, trapping 70 people in the rubble. Around 300 of the total deaths were reportedly caused by mosques collapsing at prayer time.
In Thailand, at least 18 people were killed, 68 were injured, and 90 were reported missing.
A 30-story skyscraper was under construction in Chatuchak with around 100 workers in it when the quake hit. The building crumbled as the shocks from the quake rattled the region, killing 7 workers and hospitalizing 9. Reports indicate that more than 80 people remain unaccounted for after the incident.
Strong tremors were also felt in southwest China’s Yunnan province, bordering Myanmar.
International relief efforts for the victims are coming in from around the world, with India already having shipped 15 tonnes of relief material, including food and other supplies, to the affected regions.
A C130J aircraft delivered supplies, including tents, blankets, food, water purifiers, and medicines, to Yangon. Two more IAF aircraft carrying aid will depart soon, officials said. Another 40 tonnes of humanitarian aid was on its way to Yangon on two Indian Navy ships on Saturday, March 29.
China also announced 100 million yuan ($13.77 million) worth of aid to the affected regions. A Chinese team was the first international rescue group to arrive in the country Saturday morning. Multiple other countries have also contributed or pledged to provide aid in the relief efforts for the affected region.
Updates
09:59 UTC, March 31
The death toll has jumped to more than 2 900 in Myanmar and to 18 in Thailand. More than 3 400 people were injured, and there are hundreds more missing.
Authorities in both countries have declared a state of emergency, and the death toll is still expected to rise.
This was the strongest quake to strike Myanmar since the 1912 M7.9 Maymyo earthquake and the deadliest since 1930 M7.4 Bago earthquake, in which up to 7 000 people were killed.
On April 2, 1762, an M8.5-8.8 earthquake hit along the coast of Chittagong to Arakan, triggering a local tsunami that left at least 200 people dead.
14:26 UTC, April 3
The death toll in Myanmar has risen to 4 390 and to 36 in Thailand. The number of injured people has surpassed 5 490 and hundreds are still missing.
Read more:
References:
1 Myanmar, Thailand, Bangkok Earthquake Live Updates: India, China, Russia and US send aid for relief and rescue ops; death toll over 1000 – The Indian Express – March 29, 2025
2 เหตุอาคารก่อสร้าง สตง. ถล่มจากแผ่นดินไหว พบผู้เสียชีวิตแล้ว 7 ราย การกู้ภัยจะทำอะไรอีกบ้าง – BBC – March 29, 2025
3 Myanmar earthquake death toll soars past 1,000 as Thailand scrambles to rescue trapped Bangkok workers – CNN – March 29, 2024
Image credit: SumitHansd
I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.
For LIVE UPDATES search
— Myanmar-Bangkok Earthquake Live: . . . ndtv.com — India —
— LIVE UPDATES: Magnitude 7.7 Myanmar-Thailand earthquake inquirer.net — Phillipines —
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FYI – Myanmar quake death toll passes 1,600 —
– The Daily Star (Bangladesh) – Sat Mar 29, 2025 09:34 PM – Last update on: Sat Mar 29, 2025 09:39 PM –
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– EXCERPT – Lengthy article –
Myanmar’s military rulers let in hundreds of foreign rescue personnel on Saturday after an earthquake killed more than 1,600 people, the deadliest natural disaster to hit the impoverished, war-torn country in years.
Friday’s 7.7 magnitude quake, among the biggest to jolt the Southeast Asian nation in the last century, crippled airports, bridges and highways amid a civil war that has wrecked the economy and displaced millions.
The death toll in Myanmar climbed to 1,644, the military government said on Saturday, according to BBC Burmese news service.
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– AND — High-rise chaos in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi amid Myanmar quake tremors —
– VIETNAMNET GLOBAL – 28/03/2025 17:57 (GMT+07:00) –
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A powerful earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale struck central Myanmar on March 28, sending shockwaves as far as Vietnam and causing panic among residents of high-rise buildings in cities like Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Binh Duong.
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