Burma: Efforts to deliver aid to earthquake-devastated parts of Myanmar are being hindered by unexpected rainfall over the weekend, prompting concerns among humanitarian agencies about a rising risk of disease outbreaks. United Nations officials say there is an urgent need for tents and shelter for thousands left homeless.
According to Myanmar’s state media, the death toll from the March 28 quake has climbed to 3,471, with 4,671 injured and 214 people still missing. Aid groups fear that the combination of rain and intense heat could lead to outbreaks of illnesses such as cholera, especially among survivors forced to sleep outdoors.
U.N. aid chief Tom Fletcher, visiting affected areas, painted a grim picture. “Families are camped outside their destroyed homes while bodies continue to be pulled from the debris. There’s real fear more quakes could hit,” he posted on X, urging for coordinated global assistance. “We must get tents and hope to the survivors.”
Regional countries like China, India, and several Southeast Asian nations have sent aid and rescue teams to help the roughly 28 million people living in quake-struck regions. The U.S., previously the largest humanitarian donor to Myanmar, has pledged $9 million in aid. However, U.S. officials say recent cuts to its foreign aid programme have weakened its emergency response capacity.
In a troubling development, three U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) workers dispatched to Myanmar post-quake were informed they would be laid off. “This team is working tirelessly to provide humanitarian assistance. Being told you're losing your job at a time like this is just devastating,” said Marcia Wong, a former senior USAID official.
Across the border in Thailand, local authorities reported 24 deaths related to the quake, with 17 of those casualties occurring at a construction site in Bangkok where a skyscraper collapsed. Seventy-seven people remain unaccounted for.
Myanmar continues to reel from the broader crisis following the 2021 military coup that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s government. The country is gripped by civil conflict, economic collapse, and a shattered healthcare system. The U.N. estimates that over 3 million people have been displaced due to the ongoing civil war, and more than one-third of the population now requires humanitarian assistance.
Although a ceasefire was announced on Wednesday, the U.N. human rights office on Friday reported that Myanmar’s military regime is limiting aid access to regions not aligned with its authority. The office is also looking into reports of attacks carried out by the military even after the ceasefire.
One relief group, the Free Burma Rangers, said the military conducted airstrikes in Karenni and Shan states on Thursday and Friday, killing at least five people, including civilians. According to the group’s founder, David Eubank, there have been at least seven such attacks since the ceasefire declaration.
