The military council has announced that the death toll from the March 28 earthquake that struck central Myanmar has risen to 3,455 people. According to official reports, there are 4,840 injured and 214 missing persons, bringing the total number of casualties to over 8,600. The earthquake has caused extensive damage to infrastructure, including 5,223 buildings, 1,824 schools, 2,752 monasteries and nunneries, 4,817 pagodas and temples, and 167 hospitals and clinics, according to detailed assessments.
Critical infrastructure damage includes the Yangon-Naypyidaw-Mandalay railway and road networks, several railway stations, 169 bridges, 198 dams and irrigation facilities, and 184 sections along major highways. While the military council has yet to provide adequate assistance to earthquake victims, they have begun forcing displaced people in Mandalay to relocate from their temporary shelters. Local residents report that the military council is compelling earthquake victims who had been staying in makeshift shelters along the moat to move to designated relief camps within temple compounds.
The forced relocations began even before the onset of rain, with authorities demanding that people move to what they claim are relief camps set up within temple grounds. However, many citizens have refused to comply with the military council’s directives, choosing instead to find their own safe locations for temporary shelter. Since the major earthquake on March 28, there have been more than 80 aftershocks recorded, making it unsafe for people to return to their homes. As a result, many residents continue to live in temporary shelters in open fields and on sidewalks, fearing for their safety in damaged buildings.
