At least 144 people were killed, and thousands are feared dead when two violent tremors hit Southeast Asia early Friday, toppling skyscrapers and destroying buildings.
The first quake, which had a magnitude of 7.7, hit a depth of about 6 miles near Myanmar’s second-largest city, Mandalay, at 13:20 local time (6:20 GMT). Twelve minutes later, a 6.4 aftershock shook the region.
“The damage is likely to be very severe near the epicenter-based on the estimated intensity of ground shaking above, and maps of population density and vulnerability of buildings,” said Professor Ian Main of the Seismology and Rock Physics School at the University of Edinburgh.
“The USGS ‘PAGER’ forecast loss is, sadly, most likely to be in the range 10,000 – 100,000 fatalities.”
The tremor caused a 30-story skyscraper under construction to collapse, killing at least three people and trapping dozens of others.
“I heard people calling for help, saying ‘help me,’” a police deputy said.
“I fear many lives have been lost. We have never experienced an earthquake with such a devastating impact before.”
