Almost 24 hours since the collapse, it is a different story. The wide road opposite the rubble is an ordered hustle of hundreds of people dressed in possibly dozens of different uniforms. There are pop-up kitchens, tents, trucks and gazebos. Some tourists have arrived, curious, perhaps, to see what literally rattled them on Friday afternoon.
Locals, too, were terrified. Bangkok isn’t used to earthquakes.
Exhausted military personnel take a break outside the JJ shopping centre in Bangkok on Saturday. Credit: Zach Hope
The earthquake struck around midday on Friday with the epicentre not far from Mandalay in Myanmar, some 1300 kilometres away from Bangkok. It was followed by several aftershocks including one measuring a strong 6.4 magnitude. It sent buildings in many areas toppling to the ground, buckled roads, caused bridges to collapse and burst a dam.
The country’s military-led government said in a statement on Saturday afternoon that 1002 people have been found dead and another 2376 injured, with 30 others missing. The statement suggested the numbers could still rise, saying “detailed figures are still being collected.”
Myanmar’s government said blood was in high demand in the hardest-hit areas. In a country where prior governments sometimes have been slow to accept foreign aid, junta leader General Min Aung Hlaing said Myanmar was ready to accept assistance.
A 37-member team from the Chinese province of Yunnan reached the city of Yangon early on Saturday with earthquake detectors, drones and other supplies, the official Xinhua news agency reported.
Russia’s Emergencies Ministry dispatched two planes carrying 120 rescuers and supplies, according to a report from the Russian state news agency Tass.
India sent a search and rescue team and a medical team as well as provisions, while Malaysia’s Foreign Ministry said the country would send 50 people on Sunday to help identify and provide aid to the worst-hit areas.
The United Nations allocated $US5 million ($7.9 million) to start relief efforts. US President Donald Trump said Friday that the US was going to help with the response, but some experts were concerned about this effort given his administration’s deep cuts in foreign assistance.
A DFAT spokesperson said there was no suggestion any Australian had been killed or injured in either Myanmar or Bangkok but that the situation was being monitored closely.
Leading Thai newspaper _Matichon_ reported that a consortium called ITD-CREC was behind the collapsed building in the Chatuchak area of Bangkok. The consortium comprises the China Railway No. 10 company, a joint venture called PKW, and construction giant Italian-Thai Development.
The country’s largest construction company, Italian-Thai has been involved in many of Bangkok’s largest infrastructure and government projects, but is also facing a $US3 billion ($4.8 billion) debt crunch. It was also involved in the Rama II expressway, which collapsed while under construction earlier this month, killing six people and injuring 24.
Phil Robertson, director of the Asia Human Rights and Labor Advocates (AHRLA) consultancy, was having lunch with a Swedish diplomat when the quake struck and said he thought at first that he was sick. His building cracked and concrete fell on a playground, which was fortunately empty at the time.
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“Everybody’s totally freaked out, to be honest,” he said, adding many had slept outside overnight out of fear of aftershocks. “The Bangkok parks were full.”
“I think there will be a lot of time spent talking about buildings and building codes, because a lot of the buildings are not built to withstand earthquakes.”
**Australians in need of emergency consular assistance should contact the government’s 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre 1300 555 135 (within Australia) and** **+61 2 6261 3305** **(from overseas).**