Tom (38) films how swimming pool from Hotel in Bangkok is emptying by earthquake: « My business was fortunately unharmed » (Sint-Truiden)
Bangkok in panic after heavy earthquake: « People screamed and cried » – © RR
Tom Tabruyn (38) from Sint-Truiden has been able to make striking images in Bangkok, the Thai capital where he has been living and working for seventeen years now. On his video we see a mass of water flowing down the facade of a skyscraper from a swimming pool.
A powerful earthquake with a magnitude between 7.4 and 7.7 today found Southeast Asia, with the epicenter in Central Myanmar, near Mandalay. The shocks could be felt to Bangkok, which led to panic and evacuations in the Thai capital.
Tom Tabruyn (38), originally from Sint-Truiden, has been living in Thailand for seventeen years and runs two civil affairs in Bangkok. « I was in conversation with my staff when manager Cherry said she seemed to feel dizzy. Suddenly everything started to shake. For five minutes it kept trembling. We walked outside and saw water and glass of a nearby skyscraper down. My business was happy. »
Tom Tabruyn for his business, together with manager Bongkot « Cherry » Chotanantachai. – © RR
The chaos on the street was complete. « People were panicking, customers ran outside. People cried and shouted. The entire city is still flat. Hotels and shopping centers are evacuated to check for damage. Streets are full of people who don’t know where to go. Trains have stopped driving. Everyone tries to go home, but the traffic is stuck completely. »
© RR
© RR
Chaos in Bangkokse streets. « We were not prepared for this at all. » – © RR
Despite the severe quake, there were no tangible aftershocks. « We were not prepared for this at all. This must have been the toughest earthquake in Bangkok ever. Normally, they are very light here and they often take place in Myanmar. That’s why there was so much panic: we never experience this. »
The shocks were felt as far as Bangkok. – © RR
The communication from the authorities was very limited. « The prime minister has declared the state of emergency in Bangkok, but nothing else has been communicated. No e-mails, no text messages, not even on social media. Thailand is not the most organized country in the world anyway. I also don’t think anyone was prepared for this, not even the authorities. »
