Update on earthquake in central Myanmar - 25 August 2016
A 6.8 magnitude earthquake killed three people and damaged buildings, including dozens of pagodas, across central Myanmar late yesterday, 24 August. The epicenter of the quake was 25 kilometres W of Chauk, 59 kilometres NNW of Yenangyaung, 70 kilometres SW of Pakkoku, and 207 kilometres NW of Nay Pyi Daw and the depth was 84 kilometres. The quake was also felt across southern Myanmar and as far away as Bangkok in Thailand and Dhaka in Bangladesh.
The Government’s Relief and Resettlement Department (RRD) is leading the response and spent last night collating information on damage, confirming the most severe impacts were seen in communities along the border between Magway and Mandalay. The overall humanitarian impact has been relatively low despite the earthquake’s magnitude. According to RRD, four schools have been damaged in Mandalay, Magway and Rakhine. A hospital has been damaged in Pakokku where one person was injured and other buildings affected. Two houses collapsed near the quake’s epicenter of Chauk. A total of 125 pagodas were damaged or destroyed, the majority of those in the Bagan-Nyaung U archaeological area. The ceiling of the Parliament building in Nay Pyi Taw was also damaged.
The Myanmar Government is continuing to assess damage across the earthquake zone and, along with the Myanmar Red Cross Society and other local partners, is supporting affected communities. Humanitarian organizations stand ready to support the Government but no major needs have been identified and there has so far been no request for international assistance. OCHA continues to monitor the situation and will advise of any emerging needs.
Myanmar regularly experiences earthquakes and this is the fourth tremor higher than magnitude 6.0 since 2008. Earlier this year, another 6.9 magnitude quake struck near Mawlaik in Sagaing but there were no casualties and no major damage was recorded.
