Two powerful earthquakes struck Southeast Asia on Friday, causing buildings to sway in Bangkok and prompting widespread evacuations across Thailand and neighbouring Myanmar.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) and Germany's GFZ Centre for Geosciences reported that the first quake, measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale, had a shallow depth of 10 kilometres.
Its epicentre was located in central Myanmar, approximately 50 kilometres east of Monywa, according to preliminary assessments.
A second tremor, registering a magnitude of 6.4, followed just 12 minutes later, further exacerbating the panic in affected regions.
In Bangkok, water from rooftop pools cascaded down high-rise buildings as structures trembled. Debris fell from several buildings, and alarms blared across the densely populated metropolis.
Eyewitnesses captured videos of an apartment building under construction collapsing, though the authenticity of the footage could not be immediately verified.
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Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra convened an emergency meeting to assess the impact of the quakes. While initial reports confirmed no casualties, authorities remained on high alert as tremors were felt in nearly all regions of Thailand, according to the Department of Disaster Prevention.
In Myanmar’s capital, Naypyitaw, religious shrines sustained damage, with portions of their structures toppling to the ground.
Residential buildings were also affected, though the full extent of destruction remained unclear. Myanmar’s ability to respond to the crisis is further complicated by the ongoing civil conflict in the country.
The seismic activity was also felt in Bangladesh, where a quake of magnitude 7.3 shook Dhaka and Chattogram at 12:25 p.m.
Bangladesh Meteorological Department officials reported that the epicentre was near Mandalay, Myanmar, approximately 597 kilometres from Dhaka.
“The earthquake of magnitude 7.3 is classified as a major seismic event,” Md Rubayat Kabir, acting officer at the Earthquake Observation and Research Centre, told Prothom Alo.
Meanwhile, the USGS reported a slightly higher magnitude of 7.7, with the epicentre located 16 kilometres north-northwest of Sagaing, Myanmar, at a depth of 10 kilometres.
Rescue and relief operations have been launched across affected regions, with authorities in Thailand, Myanmar, and Bangladesh closely monitoring aftershocks and structural vulnerabilities.
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