2016-08-24 Earthquake in Myanmar on 24 August, 2016

Disaster Situation

A powerful 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck central Myanmar Wednesday, killing at least three people and damaging nearly 200 pagodas in the famous ancient capital of Bagan, officials said. The quake, which the US Geological Survey said hit at a depth of 84 kilometres (52 miles), was also felt across neighbouring Thailand, India and Bangladesh, sending panicked residents rushing onto the streets. Two girls, aged 7 and 15, were killed in Magway region where the quake struck, according to Myanmar's Ministry of Information. A collapsed building in a nearby town also killed a 22-year-old man and injured one woman, local police told AFP. Heavy damage was also reported in Bagan -- Myanmar's most famous archaeological site and a major tourist destination 30 kilometres north of the quake's epicentre. Some 171 of the city's more than 2,500 Buddhist monuments were damaged by the tremors, according to a statement posted by the Ministry of Religious and Cultural Affairs on Facebook.