Earthquake in Thailand, Myanmar: Shocking photos narrate story of destruction, sorrow | World News

The devastating quake prompted Myanmar to declare a state of emergency.

The midday temblor with an epicenter near Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city, was followed by a strong 6.4 magnitude aftershock.

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Myanmar’s military-run government declared a state of emergency in six regions and states including the capital Nay Pyi Taw and Mandalay, the Associated Press reported. With the country in the midst of a prolonged bloody civil war it was not clear how help would get to many regions.

Shocking photos of the earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand narrate a tale of destruction

Many shocking photos have emerged in the aftermath of the high-intensity earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand. The visuals narrate a harrowing tale of destruction, sorrow, and panic among the residents.

The Red Cross said downed power lines in Myanmar are adding to challenges for their teams trying to reach Mandalay and Sagaing regions and southern Shan state.

In Bangkok, a construction worker was killed when rubble from the collapsing building site hit his truck, and another was crushed by the falling debris, rescue worker Songwut Wangpon told reporters. A third person is also reported killed in the collapse, the video of which has gone viral on social media.

The sound of sirens echoed throughout central Bangkok, and vehicles filled the streets, leaving some of the city’s already congested streets gridlocked. The elevated rapid transit system and subway were shut down.

City hall declared the city a disaster area to facilitate interagency aid and emergency help. The greater Bangkok area is home to more than 17 million people, many of whom live in high-rise apartments.

April Kanichawanakul, who works in an office building in Bangkok’s city center, at first didn’t even realize it was an earthquake, the first she’d ever experienced.

“I just thought I was dizzy,” she told the news agency AP.

Kanichawanakul and her colleagues ran downstairs from the tenth floor of their office building and waited outside for a signal that it was safe to go back in. The scenes were similar in many other buildings across the affected region.

“All of a sudden, the whole building began to move. Immediately, there was screaming and a lot of panic,” Fraser Morton, a tourist from Scotland, told AP

Morton was in one of Bangkok’s many malls shopping for camera equipment.

“I got outside and then looked up at the building, and the whole building was moving, dust and debris, it was pretty intense. Lots of chaos,” he said about the scenes of the earthquake.

Like Morton, thousands of people poured into Benjasiri Park from nearby shopping malls, high rises, and apartment buildings along Bangkok’s busy Sukhumvit Road.

Many were on phones trying to reach loved ones as others sought shade from the hot early afternoon sun. Others stared up fearfully at the tall buildings in the densely packed part of the city.