Five more people have been rescued from the rubble in Myanmar nearly 60 hours after a powerful earthquake devastated parts of the country, as fears grow that the true death toll could climb above 10,000.
The survivors were pulled from a collapsed school in the northern Sagaing region, according to Myanmar’s fire department, which also recovered one body from the site.
In Mandalay, emergency teams rescued a woman from the debris of the Great Wall Hotel, the Chinese embassy said, adding that her condition was stable.
The official death toll in Myanmar rose to 1,700 on Sunday, according to the military junta, although some reports estimated around 2,000 confirmed dead. Hundreds remain missing, and many communities are yet to be reached due to blocked roads, damaged bridges and the country’s ongoing civil conflict.
On Saturday night, an elderly woman was rescued in Myanmar’s capital, Naypyidaw, after being trapped for 36 hours under the rubble of a hospital.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) has estimated that the final death toll could exceed 10,000, based on predictive modelling that accounts for the country’s infrastructure, building types and access to rescue services.
In Bangkok, the death toll from the collapse of an under-construction skyscraper rose to 18 on Sunday. At least 76 workers are still believed to be buried under the debris. Thai authorities said signs of life were detected at the site over the weekend, but the chances of survival were narrowing with each passing hour.
Friday’s 7.7-magnitude quake, which struck near Mandalay just 10km below the surface, was the most powerful to hit Myanmar in more than a century.
More than 23,000 people have been affected across central Myanmar, according to the United Nations, which has rushed relief supplies to the region. Humanitarian groups have warned that many quake-hit areas remain inaccessible, particularly those in conflict zones where military airstrikes continue despite international appeals for a ceasefire.
The UN’s refugee agency said its teams in Mandalay were working “despite going through the trauma themselves”.
Meanwhile, aid has begun to arrive from China, India, Russia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and other countries. The US has pledged $2m in support and deployed an emergency response team from USAID.
Health facilities have been severely damaged and are facing shortages of trauma kits, blood bags and essential medicines, according to the UN’s humanitarian agency. Many rescues in the early hours relied on local residents digging through rubble by hand before international teams arrived.
Myanmar has been engulfed in a civil war since the military seized power in 2021, displacing over 3.5 million people and deepening an ongoing humanitarian crisis.
The National Unity Government, representing the ousted civilian administration, has announced a two-week pause in offensive military operations in areas affected by the earthquake.
But a rebel group said the military was still conducting airstrikes on villages in the aftermath of the quake, actions that were condemned by the UN’s special rapporteur for Myanmar, Tom Andrews, as “outrageous and unacceptable”.
Singapore’s foreign minister called for an immediate ceasefire to help relief efforts.
Critical infrastructure like bridges, highways, airports and railways lie damaged across the country of 55 million, slowing humanitarian efforts. Satellite imagery showed the air traffic control tower at the capital’s Naypyidaw International Airport had completely collapsed.
With the monsoon season approaching in April, aid groups have warned that many displaced communities face heightened risks of flooding and disease in the weeks to come.
