GistNexus – April 03, 2025.
Myanmar was struck by a huge 7.7 earthquake on Friday, one of the strongest to strike the nation in over a hundred years. It was centered not far from Mandalay, the country’s second-largest city, and the damage that has resulted has been devastating. Hundreds of structures collapsed, roads cracked, and primary infrastructure, including bridges and medical facilities, was devastated in various parts of Myanmar. Impacts of the earthquake were strongly felt in Mandalay, where residents and visitors experienced terrifying vibrations followed by continued aftershocks that forced thousands to flee to the streets.
Swelling Casualties and Widespread Destruction
By Thursday, the death toll stood at 3,085, as search and rescue operations kept extracting bodies from the wreckage. The military regime reported 4,715 persons as injured and 341 as missing. However, with communications severely disrupted and large portions of the devastated zones still out of reach, many suspect that official figures are a drastic underestimate. Local media reports suggest that the number of victims could be much higher, with several communities still cut off from aid. The quake struck at a time when Myanmar itself was going through severe political instability, in the form of the 2021 coup led by the military.
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The crisis had already affected over 3 million people and displaced them, and the quake has only escalated an already disaster-level humanitarian crisis. Almost 20 million people were already vulnerable to aid needs, according to the United Nations, before the quake struck.
Humanitarian Crisis Unfolds
As rescue efforts progress, relief agencies, including the World Health Organization (WHO), issued an alarm warning of worsening conditions. The WHO’s initial report estimated that four hospitals and one health center were completely destroyed, with 32 hospitals and 18 health centers partially destroyed. In most of the districts, access to medical care was practically impossible and doctors had to cope with an influx of patients.
The condition is worst among trauma patients and surgery patients. “Thousands of people require urgent trauma care, surgery, and treatment of disease outbreaks,” the U.N. said, as hospitals are doing their best to handle a higher workload.
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To help, medical teams from all over the world are beginning to arrive in Myanmar, including an Indian mobile hospital and joint Russian-Belarusian hospital now operating in Mandalay. These efforts aside, the scale of the disaster has left others in a simple lack of essentials, including food, clean water, and shelter. The world is helping, with over 1,550 rescue workers from 17 nations now on the ground, providing essential assistance to survivors.
A Faithful Response Amid Devastation
In the midst of the ruin, the communities of faith have come together to relief the victims. Fr. Girish Santiago, Jesuit Regional Superior of Myanmar, traveled to Mandalay shortly after the earthquake occurred to assess damage and coordinate responses. He told about the harrowing experience of the quake and terror that befell locals in the first days following the catastrophe. There is also a high degree of faith and resilience even after all the ruin.
“We took turns celebrating the Eucharist on Tuesday morning in an open area before the bishop’s residence, which has been devastated, including the clergy residence,” Fr. Santiago reported. “Diocesan offices have been taken outside, and workers now eat and work in open areas.”
Fr. Santiago’s activity has been one of taking relief to the victims of the earthquake. His motorcycle rounds in the area have taken him to makeshift shelters where the rich and poor now live together. Food, water, and medicine are in huge demand in these settlements.
Impact on Religious Institutions
A number of religious institutions within the devastated areas have also been greatly impacted. The Servite Sisters convent and the nearby St. Anthony Church were both reduced to rubble. But the Sisters have been unyielding, still cooking and distributing food to the poor. The Sisters of St. Joseph of the Apparition (SJA), established in Myanmar for over 175 years, have continued working, unbroken despite their challenges. 44 internally displaced children have also been activated in the process of preparing and distributing food to their neighbors at their boarding house. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Thailand (CBCT) has also stepped in, making an emergency appeal for funds to support victims of the disaster in Myanmar. Archbishop Francis Xavier Vira Arpondratana of Bangkok highlighted the necessity of ongoing immediate emergency aid to support survivors of the earthquake.
Regional Consequences and Global Reaction
Although Myanmar has been hit the most severely by the devastation of the earthquake, its neighbor Thailand has not escaped unscathed. In the capital city of Bangkok, a 30-story government office building that was under construction crumpled, burying dozens of workers beneath the rubble. The death toll confirmed from the collapse rose to 13, with 74 remaining unaccounted for. Rescue workers in Bangkok continue searching for people trapped alive, but optimism is running thin as the hours pass. Thailand’s 20 domestic fatalities resulting from the quake are thus far the only confirmed deaths in the disaster. The global response has been swift, with countries all over the world sending aid and rescue teams to assist in the recovery efforts. The extent of the destruction in both Thailand and Myanmar has placed the region as a whole in the international limelight in terms of vulnerability to natural disaster, as well as Myanmar’s perpetual issues with political instability.
Myanmar’s Military Ceasefire and Continuing Strife
In a bid to pave the way for the relief of humanitarian aid, Myanmar’s ruling military junta announced an informal ceasefire as of April 22. This followed ceasefire appeals by armed rebels fighting against military regime. While many aid agencies welcomed the ceasefire appeal, there is still the risk of ongoing hostilities between the junta and rebellion forces hindering the delivery of aid.
News from Myanmar’s Kachin State in the north reported that military attacks continued in some areas but has not been independently verified. The Kachin Independence Army (KIA), which is a main rebel group, declared its ceasefire but with the right to retaliate against military action if it was being attacked in self-defense.
The ceasefire declaration by the military junta has been seen as a probable move toward enhanced access for humanitarian relief, but the effectiveness of such measures remains questionable with more fighting going on in other parts of the nation.
Hope Amid the Rubble
While Myanmar tries to cope with the destruction wrought by the earthquake, the world and the government are eager to provide life-saving assistance to its victims. Rescue teams in Mandalay work around the clock to evacuate survivors from collapsed buildings, and improvised shelters are being erected to house displaced individuals rendered homeless by the tragedy. Amidst the destruction that appears to engulf everything, the determination of Myanmar’s people and the unity of humanitarian agencies give a glimmer of hope amid the wreckage. While the world waits, efforts to rebuild Myanmar and assist its people after this catastrophic earthquake have only just begun. The weeks ahead will show whether or not the country is able to quickly recover, and if foreign aid will be enough to cover the many challenges in store.
In the meantime, the survivors cling to the hope to rebuild their lives amidst unthinkable loss and hardship.
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Reported by GistNexus Team and Edited by Mr. Chibueze Onwuka