The 7.7 magnitude earthquake rattled much of Southeast Asia on Friday.
ByMark Osborne, Jon Haworth, Meredith Deliso, David Brennan, Ivan Pereira, Kevin Shalvey, and Megan Forrester
Last Updated: March 31, 2025, 3:38 PM EDT
A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake rattled much of Southeast Asia on Friday, resulting in mounting casualties and flattened skyscrapers from Myanmar to Thailand.
The epicenter was in Mandalay, Myanmar, the country's second-largest city. Even Bangkok, some 600 miles away, felt widespread shaking and saw significant damage from the quake -- including the total collapse of a skyscraper under construction.
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Mar 31, 2025, 3:38 PM EDT
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Myanmar death toll climbs to 2,056
Here's how the news is developing.
Mar 31, 12:28 pm
Death toll crosses 2,000
Casualties are expected to rise as search and rescue efforts are underway in collapsed buildings in Myanmar and Thailand, officials said.
In Myanmar, the death toll has climbed to 2,056, with more than 3,900 people injured and 270 people reported missing, according to the Myanmar Military Junta.
In Bangkok, at least 13 people were killed in a building collapse in Chatuchak, according to the Bangkok Metro Authority.
Mar 28, 2025, 1:30 PM EDT
State Department 'not aware' of any US casualties at this time
The U.S. State Department is "not aware of any U.S. citizens injured or killed" in the earthquake at this time, a State Department official said.
"We continue to monitor the situation closely and are in touch with local authorities," the official added.
The State Department said in a statement it extends "our deepest condolences to all affected in Burma and Thailand by the earthquake that struck near Mandalay earlier this morning."
-ABC News' Shannon K. Kingston
Mar 28, 2025, 1:06 PM EDT
Scene in Bangkok was ‘pretty insane,' eyewitness says
Michelle Moody, an American living in Bangkok, was on her way to lunch with friends when the earthquake occurred.
"It was pretty insane," she told ABC News Live. "I lived in D.C. in 2011 with the earthquake there, and being an American, I had an idea of what to do, but most people were just running around kind of crazy and just trying to escape buildings so as quick as they possibly could."
In the aftermath of the quake, people were assessing damage to their residences and, with trains shut down, walking home, she said. Aftershocks remain a concern.
"I live in a high-rise, so definitely fear of aftershocks are something I'm worried about," she said.
5:04
Earthquake eyewitness: Scene in Bangkok was ‘pretty insane’ABC News’ Marcus Moore reports on the quake, and eyewitness Michelle Moody describes what she saw as the destruction unfolded.
ABCNews.com
Mar 28, 2025, 12:21 PM EDT
Witness captures Bangkok building collapse while driving on highway
Jack Brown was driving on a highway in Bangkok and thought he had punctured a tire when his vehicle swerved a little bit.
"I parked the car in stationary and realized that the car was still moving around quite a lot and I immediately knew then it was an earthquake," Brown told ABC News Live.
Concerned about being on the elevated highway during the earthquake, he continued along and saw a building under construction collapse "in a matter of seconds." He captured the collapse on video from his car.
"It was just horrifying to see that destruction, knowing that there are very likely a lot of people in the site," he said.
At least eight people were killed in the collapse, as a search and rescue effort is underway for more than 100 who remain missing, police said.
Brown said he had never experienced anything like this in his 10 years of living in Bangkok.
"When you're in an earthquake, you don't know if you're at the beginning of it, the middle or the end. Are there going to be any other aftershocks or any other earthquakes following this one? Are they going to get worse?" he said. "There was concern, but it was unprecedented for me, I didn't really know what to expect or what to do, and I just wanted to sort of keep moving and get away from that zone."
Mar 28, 2025, 12:07 PM EDT
8 dead in skyscraper collapse in Bangkok
At least eight people were killed and nine injured when a skyscraper that was under construction collapsed in Bangkok, according to the Royal Thai Police.
A search and rescue effort is continuing into the night for those who remain trapped, with more than 100 people still missing, police said
Officials said earlier there were approximately 320 construction workers on site when the building in Bangkok collapsed.
Related Topics
- Earthquakes
- Myanmar
