The toll from the violent earthquake of magnitude 7.7 that struck Myanmar yesterday is rising dramatically: over 1,000 dead and 2,000 injured, as announced by the Asian country's junta. But it could have caused more than 10,000 victims, according to US officials quoted by CNN: an estimate in line with that of the experts. A terrifying earthquake, which in addition to Burma also caused damage in Thailand .
Rescuers have been digging through the rubble of collapsed buildings for hours, desperately searching for survivors. The earthquake has destroyed buildings, knocked down bridges and bent roads across large parts of Myanmar , with massive destruction in Mandalay, the Asian country's second largest city with over 1.7 million inhabitants.
Around 10 more deaths have been confirmed in Bangkok, Thailand. But with communications severely disrupted, the full scale of the disaster is only just beginning to emerge from the isolated military-ruled state, and the toll is expected to rise significantly .
In Myanmar, in the last 24 hours, at least ten to eleven minor earthquakes have occurred, with magnitudes between 4.1 and 4.5 . This was reported by the US Geological Survey, Usgs. The tremors occurred in various areas of the country, but with a greater concentration in the central area, where the Sagaing fault runs, which also includes the capital Naypyidaw.
(Online Union)