The earthquake had a magnitude of 7.7 and its center was located near the million city of Mandalay. Myanmar’s capital Naypyidaw was also hit hard.
Now a fight against the clock is going on where you try to save survivors from the masses. Electricity and the Internet are down in large parts of the areas affected.
– It is a country that is already in a civil war. Four years ago it was a military coup in February 2021. Since then, the country has ended up in a bloody civil war with many different groups fighting against the military, says Anders Frankenberg on Sida, Head of Department for Asia, Mena and Latin America department.
– There are also three million internal refugees and certainly hundreds of thousands who have moved out of the country. In addition, they were hit quite hard by the pandemic with the cuts that were then and the country was closed again. Both economically and socially.
Unusual feature of military junta
After the earthquake, the country’s military junta has asked for international help, something that Anders Frankenberg responds to.
– It’s unusual. You don’t usually do that. This is a clear sign that the scope of this earthquake is very large. Many people have been affected. There are many buildings that have fallen apart. Bridges, roads.
And he says you try to assist from the Swedish side.
– The UN is in place and we will increase our support now. We already have SEK 158 million that have been allocated to UN organizations located in Myanmar. Last night we talked to them to emphasize that it is possible to use this money to save those who have been affected by this earthquake.
Young businessman is digging after his wife
The biggest challenge in the next few days will be to save the people who have been injured or still stuck under the masses, says Anders Frankenberg.
– Healthcare is already overloaded and I unfortunately think that we will see even more people who need care and help. Hopefully the UN and other organizations will be able to help in the health sector.
But if the earthquake can have any political effects in such a closed country as Myanmar, he cannot answer at the moment.
– It will be affected by the fact that there are more international organizations that will come in now. But if it will have a political effect in a positive direction is difficult to say today.
The devastation is also great in Bangkok, where you work to save people from the masses. Outside one of the houses stands a young businessman and helps dig. Inside the house, which now only has six of its original twelve floors, is his wife. They have had contact with her, but the rescue leader has asked him not to talk to her anymore.
– We can’t talk now. We are afraid that she will be too chased. She is so weak and the rescue workers asked me not to talk to her, the man tells TV4 News.