In Mandalay, near the epicenter of the earthquake that shook the area, volunteer rescuers competed with time, staring at the abandoned apartments, monasteries and mosques to find survivors. Others struggled to agree with everything they had lost.
Defeating power lines, destroying roads, and lack of equipment has made rescue operations even more intense in cities that are already oppressive military governments and now enduring a fourth year civil war.
“At least 100 people are still trapped inside,” said Thaw Zin, a volunteer who sat in front of the destroyed apartment complex. “We're doing our best with what we have.”
The earthquake struck around 12:50pm local time on Friday, local time, only a third of the earthquake hit the area in the past century. The extent of the catastrophe remains enormous. The Myanmar military junta has declared a state of emergency in six regions. These include areas controlled by the Internet and rebels, with millions of displaced people present.
Su Wai Lin was able to escape with her husband and mother-in-law when the earthquake struck, but her husband returned to her Mandalay apartment to save her 90-year-old neighbor.
The building then collapsed, killing her husband and neighbors.
“I can't put into words the pain I feel,” Suwai Lin, six months pregnant, cried when he spoke at the hospital. “My child is born without a father. We may have survived physically, but our hearts and emotions are shattered.”
On Saturday, the street was stuck with an ambulance heading to Ping Oo Lewin, the town about two hours' drive from Mandalay. Overcrowded hospitals in Mandalay were unable to accommodate more patients.
Tay Zar Lin had picked mangoes as the ground began to sway. He fell from the tree he was in and broke his leg. There were no doctors in the Mandalay hospital on Friday, so he waited in pain all night and met the doctor on Saturday morning.
Tay Zar Lin, who married last month, said he just learned that his wife was still trapped in the collapsed building that houses the tailor shop where she works.
“I don't know if she's alive or not,” said Tay Zar Lynn, whose legs are on the cast. “I hope yesterday morning wasn't the last time I saw her.”
He said if Myanmar's exiled and imprisoned civil leader Do Aung San Suu Kee is in charge now, “many trapped people could have been rescued and unnecessary deaths could have been prevented.”
Anger was growing at the military that took power in a February 2021 coup. Volunteer rescuer Thaw Zin said soldiers and police officers stood up but nothing helped them.
“They're wandering around here with guns,” he said. “You don't need a gun. You need to have a hand and a mind.”
By Saturday morning, dozens of ordinary people from other Myanmar cities packed their cars and vans with supplies, headed to Mandalay, and the resistance against the national civil disobedience movement – Junta, is cultivating Cain, Taninteri and their sacred things. Several international aid groups said they were rushing to the disaster site.
“None of us is trained to rescue earthquakes,” said Ko Thein Win, a volunteer rescue worker who rushed to the location of the destroyed apartment complex. “Yesterday we found some survivors, but today our chances are much lower.”
He said they needed urgently skilled rescuers and heavy equipment such as excavators.
Eent Sadar Fiu, 18, an English teacher in Mandalay, said he was on the second floor of the hostel where he was staying when the earthquake struck. She was in a hurry to pack basic items such as ID when the aftershocks were hit.
“I thought I was going to die,” she said.
Eaint Thadar Phyu said he couldn't sleep Friday night due to a series of aftershocks. “I was scared that they would turn into something huge again.”
The extent of the death toll was still unknown, but the scale of the disaster was severe. From the monasteries to the apartment buildings, mountains of crumble tiled rubs dot the landscape.
With a population of about 1.5 million, Mandalay is Myanmar's second largest city. It is a former royal capital and is known as a centre of Burmese culture and Buddhism, and has numerous temples, monasteries and pagodas.
On Saturday morning, shaken residents gathered at hospitals and relief centres to think about all they had lost. The red tent was set up to help rescuers rest on a 100-degree heat. Residents spoke about how their homes became a ruined city. Many were still walking around in tears.
Long lines were formed at gas stations as people refill their fuel and prepared for days without strength.
Verena Hölzl Reports of contributions.
