A powerful earthquake in Burma, tremors felt in Thailand and China – Liberation
A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck the center of Burma on Friday, announced The American Geological Institute (USGS), an earthquake whose tremors were felt to Thailand and China. The earthquake occurred sixteen kilometers northwest of the city of Sagaing, around 2:20 p.m. local time, said the USGS.
In the Burmese capital, in Naycyidaw, the roads were distorted under the effect of tremors and pieces of ceiling fell from buildings, AFP journalists found.
Strong tremors were felt in neighboring Thailand, causing panic scenes in the capital Bangkok, where offices and stores have been evacuated. « I heard the noise while I was sleeping at home, I ran as far away as possible in pajamas outside the building »AFP Duangjai, a resident of the second city in the country, Chiang Mai, a popular destination for tourists and renowned for its temples.
The tremors were also felt in the north and center of Thailand. In Bangkok, a 30 -storey building collapsed, trapping 43 workers, according to the Reuters agency, while certain metro services have been suspended. The Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra immediately announced the summons of a « Emergency meeting ».
Other tremors have also been felt in the Chinese province of Yunnan (Southwest), according to the Chinese agency in charge of earthquakes, which recorded a magnitude 7.9 shock.
The earthquakes are relatively frequent in Burma, where six earthquakes that have reached or exceeded a magnitude of 7 occurred between 1930 and 1956 near the sagaing flaw, which crossed the center of the country from north to south. The latest, in 2016, Of a 6.8 magnitude, had rocked the ancient capital, Bagan, in the center of the country, killing three people and causing the collapse of the walls of the temples of this tourist destination. Five years earlier, an earthquake, of the same magnitude, had struck the center of the country, Puting at least 75 dead and more than a hundred injured.
The weakness of the infrastructure, the insufficient health services, especially in rural areas, the anarchic development of urbanized areas have made the population of the inhabited regions particularly vulnerable in the event of a natural disaster, according to experts.
