On Wednesday, Myanmar residents witnessed a strong earthquake that struck with a recorded magnitude of 6.9 north of its capital Yangon, the U.S. Geological Survey said in a statement. The earthquake’s impact was so strong, that both India and China reported tremors felt following the earthquake in Myanmar.
Authorities have not yet reported any casualties after the earthquake although panic was booming in Yangon as buildings were shaking for periods of up to a full minute. However, people from Myanmar are no strangers for earthquakes, as the region is known for its tectonic activity.
Fortunately for Yangon residents, there was no major aftermath after the tough earthquake and there have been no reports of people injured, according to local authorities. The quake was also felt in the eastern Indian states including Assam and West Bengal, yet it was minor replicas as no actual damages were reported.
Given that the area is known for its seismic activity, Myanmar has taken this into account as there are no high buildings and its population is scattered around the region. Authorities claimed that because the incident occurred at night, it is difficult for them to determine what the actual aftermath of the earthquake really was.
Further search is needed to determine actual damages
Yet considering there’s that level of uncertainty towards the damages resulted from the quake, it’s safe to assume Myanmar held its own during the event. Nevertheless, residents from Kolkata reported cracks in several buildings following the quake on Wednesday. The amount of fear through the crowds across Yangon was palpable, say some witnesses of the quake.
Some people had not even witnessed a tremor until Wednesday; while residents were as scared as them claiming that this has been the strongest earthquake to hit Myanmar so far. It’s worth noticing that Yangon Myanmar isn’t the richest region in the country and has structures in need of maintenance for a long time.
This helps the city to become a more vulnerable target for any sort of natural disaster, quakes especially. India and Bangladesh have reported minor building damages and a few injuries following the quake as a result of people running desperately across the streets. This was the first earthquake to hit northwestern Myanmar in over 4 years, which could help explain the level of fear reported by witnesses of the event.
Source: The Wall Street Journal