More than 1,600 people have died in Myanmar following a devastating earthquake, with survivors in some areas telling the BBC they have been left to dig through rubble with their bare hands in search of loved ones.
The quake has flattened much of Mandalay, Myanmar’s ancient capital and second-largest city, home to about 1.5 million people. A lack of equipment, disrupted communication networks, and damaged roads and bridges have severely hindered rescue operations.
Myanmar’s military junta, which seized power in 2021, has lost control of large parts of the country due to an ongoing civil war against rebel groups and anti-coup resistance forces.
Although rescue efforts have been ongoing since Friday and international aid has started arriving, relief has yet to reach the worst-hit areas. In the absence of official coordination, ordinary citizens have been forced to dig out survivors by hand.
Widely circulated footage shows two men removing rubble to free a young woman trapped between two concrete slabs. Locals told the BBC that people were still screaming for help from beneath the debris.
Rescuers managed to pull a woman alive from the wreckage of a 12-story apartment block in Mandalay nearly 30 hours after it collapsed, but the Red Cross estimates that more than 90 people may still be trapped.
In a nearby township, authorities discovered the bodies of 12 preschool children and a teacher beneath a collapsed kindergarten.
The UN humanitarian agency OCHA reported that severe damage to the main highway connecting Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon, to the capital, Nay Pyi Taw, and Mandalay has significantly disrupted transportation. Medical supplies, including trauma kits, blood bags, anesthetics, essential medicines, and tents for health workers, are also in short supply.
Rescue workers continue to listen for any signs of life. “We can only rescue people when we hear them,” one worker said.
On Saturday, a rescue team in Mandalay’s Sintkai township pulled several people from the debris of a collapsed private school. Six—five females and one male—had already died by the time rescuers arrived. The victims included students, teachers, and staff.
A lack of proper equipment has slowed down rescues. “We are making do with what we have,” a worker told BBC Burmese. “We have been trying for hours to pull out a girl trapped under the collapsed school.”
Communication has also been severely disrupted, making coordination difficult. A rescue worker in Mandalay told a BBC reporter in Yangon that contacting teams on the ground has been nearly impossible.
“The main thing is that we don’t have internet lines, we don’t have phone lines, so it’s very difficult to connect with each other. The rescue team has arrived, but we don’t know where it will go because the phone lines are down,” he said.
A Mandalay resident described the rescue efforts as chaotic, with little official leadership.
“There is no coordination in the rescue efforts, no one to lead them, or tell them what to do. Locals have had to fend for themselves. If they find dead bodies in the debris, they don’t even know where to send them; hospitals are overwhelmed and unable to cope,” the resident said.
The junta estimates that over 1,500 buildings in Mandalay have been damaged. Widespread power outages have exacerbated the crisis, and officials say restoring electricity could take days.
Mandalay’s airport is currently inoperable due to runway damage. The military council has set up a temporary hospital, medical relief camp, and shelter at the site while working to restore airport operations.
Just 25 kilometers from Mandalay, in Sagaing, the older of two bridges connecting the region has completely collapsed, while the newer bridge has developed cracks, making it impassable. The blockage has prevented emergency teams from reaching the area.
“Right now, there are not enough people even for emergency rescue. We can’t pick up bodies, there are so many people trapped. We can’t cross either bridge, so we are all stuck in the rubble. Please help emergency rescuers come and rescue us,” a local resident pleaded to BBC Burmese.
The newly built capital, Nay Pyi Taw, where the military junta is headquartered, has experienced aftershocks and minor tremors. The city has suffered extensive damage, with high casualties, collapsed buildings, and buckled roads.
Despite making a rare international appeal for aid, the junta has continued airstrikes and drone attacks against armed opposition groups.
BBC Burmese confirmed that at least seven people were killed in an airstrike in Naungcho in northern Shan state. The attack took place around 3:30 p.m. local time, less than three hours after the earthquake struck.
Pro-democracy rebel groups have reported additional aerial bombings in Chang-U township in central Sagaing, the epicenter of the quake. There are also reports of airstrikes near the Thai border.
Tom Andrews, the UN’s special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, condemned the military’s actions.
“The problem is that you still have military operations going on right now… Military strikes by the junta,” he told the BBC.
“I’m calling upon the junta to just stop, stop any of its military operations. This is completely outrageous and unacceptable.”
As rescue efforts continue, Myanmar’s humanitarian crisis deepens, with thousands still unaccounted for and survivors pleading for urgent assistance.