U.S. Pledges $2 Million for Myanmar Earthquake Response
The United States will provide up to US$2 million in humanitarian aid to support earthquake victims in Myanmar, its embassy in Yangon said Sunday. The assistance will be provided through Myanmar-based humanitarian organizations to deliver emergency shelter, food, medical aid, and clean water to those in need.
A USAID emergency response team is also being deployed to assess the most urgent needs and coordinate relief efforts, it said. “The United States stands with the people of Myanmar as they work to recover from the devastation,” it added. “We offer our deepest condolences for the loss of life and infrastructure in this difficult time.”
Myanmar regime snubs Taiwan quake aid
Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry reports that Myanmar’s military regime has yet to respond to its offer of disaster aid following the 7.7-magnitude earthquake that struck central Myanmar on Friday. The ministry said it had prepared a rescue team of 120 members, six rescue dogs and 15 tons of rescue equipment. Meanwhile, junta boss Min Aung Hlaing personally welcomed and thanked a Chinese rescue team from Yunnan Province as it arrived in Myanmar on Sunday.
KNU warns of junta misappropriation of quake aid
The Karen National Union (KNU) has called for robust monitoring to prevent the military regime from misappropriating international aid after the Myanmar earthquake as it did after Cyclone Nargis in 2008.
In a statement on Sunday, the ethnic armed group expressed condolences for victims of the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Myanmar on Friday and thanks for international aid efforts but condemned the junta for continuing airstrikes on civilian targets during the crisis, accusing the regime of prioritizing resource exploitation and attacks on civilians over disaster relief.
As affected populations live both in junta-controlled areas and those seized by resistance forces, the KNU urged the international community to support “coordinated efforts based on the parallel aid processes through local community groups that provide critical help on the ground” so aid reaches those who need it most.
Quake death toll in tourist hotspot Inle Lake rises to 89
The death toll from the earthquake in the Inle Lake area of Nyaung Shwe Township, southern Shan State has risen to 89, according to the Human Rights of Inle Region organization and volunteers assisting those affected. Inle, a popular tourist destination where most houses are built on stilts over the water, saw over 2,300 homes collapse due to the quake. Thousands of residents from more than a dozen affected villages are now sheltering in schools and monasteries in unaffected areas, requiring humanitarian assistance. Although the confirmed death toll is nearly 90, with dozens still missing, the volunteers and local rescue teams anticipate finding more bodies as they continue rescue efforts in other villages.
Guests, staff trapped after deadly hotel collapse in Shan State
Several guests and six staffers remain trapped in the ruins of Aungban Hotel in Shan State’s Aungban town, after it collapsed in Friday’s earthquake, according to rescue teams. Nine bodies have been recovered from the hotel rubble while 25 people have been rescued alive.
Five-year-old child, pregnant woman rescued from collapsed building
Two Chinese rescue teams early Monday saved three people, including a five-year-old child and a pregnant woman who had been trapped for over 60 hours in the collapsed Sky Villa condominium at Mandalay, the Chinese Embassy in Yangon said.
At 00:40 a.m. Monday, the rescuers also saved another woman who had been trapped in the collapsed Great Wall Hotel in the city.
Vietnamese military, police rescue team arrives in Myanmar
A Vietnamese rescue team—including military and police personnel—arrived in Yangon on Sunday. The 106-member team arrived with search and rescue dogs and more than 60 tons of cargo for relief efforts, including medical equipment and food supplies. It is set to begin its rescue operations immediately in Mandalay, the city closest to the earthquake’s epicenter. The mission head said the team is determined and undeterred by the challenges ahead, fully prepared to undertake all tasks to support Myanmar and its people in their time of need. In response to the Myanmar junta’s request for assistance, Vietnam has also pledged an emergency aid package worth US$300,000 to support earthquake recovery efforts, according to Vietnamese media reports.
Worker pleads with Thai PM to help find building collapse survivors
A man representing foreign workers approached Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra when she visited the site of the collapsed State Audit Office building at noon Monday, pleading with her for help in finding people still trapped in the building, especially Myanmar workers, Khaosod English reported.
Paetongtarn told him she was encouraging everyone, that all were helping to their fullest capacity, and that rescue efforts were being expedited regardless of the victims’ nationalities. The man then fell to his knees and wept, which prompted her to bend down and help him up, saying, “Stay strong for each other,” according to the report.
The half-built 30-story building in the Jatujak area collapsed Friday afternoon when shockwaves from the earthquake in upper Myanmar reached Bangkok. The search for survivors trapped in the rubble continued on Monday as life signs were still being detected. The bodies of 11 victims have been recovered but 78 workers remain unaccounted for. A Chinese company is the lead partner in the building’s construction.
Junta blocks foreign media from covering earthquake
The Myanmar junta has denied requests for entry by foreign media seeking to cover the earthquake disaster, regime spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun said Sunday via a voice message to regime-affiliated media groups. He cited difficulties with accommodation, power outages and water shortages as well as the busy rescue operations of regime officials from the regional to the ward levels as reasons for its denial.
Currently, only a few Myanmar-based foreign media outlets and pro-regime news organizations are permitted to report from the disaster zones. Meanwhile, most independent Myanmar media, forced into exile by the junta’s crackdown, are covering the disaster remotely, relying on reports from local residents and their underground journalists inside the country.
Malaysian rescue team reaches Sagaing
The Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (SMART) contingent announced on Monday its team had reached Sagaing, the epicenter of Friday’s 7.7-magnitude earthquake, after 24 hours of traveling, becoming the first foreign rescue team to reach the town. The deployed mission to Myanmar, MAS-01, comprises 50 members who are highly experienced in medical/trauma response and urban search and rescue, and is equipped with specialized heavy equipment and vehicles.
The team’s capability allows it to operate non-stop in two different operating areas within a period of 14 days without any assistance from disaster-stricken countries, SMART said.
