Survivors of Myanmar’s devastating 7.7-magnitude earthquake now face a second wave of hardship as powerful thunderstorms and heavy rains lash already shattered communities. The extreme weather is hampering rescue operations and worsening an already dire humanitarian crisis.
Late Sunday (April 6), residents in the most severely affected regions, including Mandalay and the capital Naypyitaw, braced for more extreme weather after a night of strong winds and torrential rain. The deluge forced rescue teams to temporarily halt the use of electrical equipment vital to search efforts, according to officials from the Myanmar Rescue Federation.

“Despite the rain, we won’t stop. But the weather has made everything more difficult,” said one rescuer in Mandalay, who, like many others, spoke on condition of anonymity due to fears of military reprisal.
State-run broadcaster MRTV issued warnings of continued thunderstorms, sudden downpours, lightning, and possible landslides across the country throughout the week. Temperatures are also forecasted to climb sharply, reaching as high as 38°C (100°F) by midweek — a cruel twist for thousands of displaced people now sleeping outdoors in makeshift shelters or in the open.

The March 28 earthquake, with its epicenter near Mandalay, left a wide swath of destruction across six states and regions. As of Sunday, Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, spokesperson for Myanmar’s military government, confirmed 3,564 deaths, 5,012 injuries, and 210 people still missing.

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Infrastructure across the region is in shambles: power lines are down, communication is spotty, and major roads and bridges are either damaged or impassable. The government reports that over 5,200 buildings, 1,824 schools, and nearly 5,000 religious’ structures — including pagodas and temples — have sustained damage. Additionally, 167 hospitals, 169 bridges, and 198 dams are affected, along with 184 sections of the country’s main highway.

In a particularly harrowing report, The Irrawaddy, an independent news outlet operating in exile, stated that at least 80 bodies were recovered from the rubble of Mandalay’s Great Wall Hotel on Sunday. The Myanmar Fire Services Department also confirmed the retrieval of five bodies from other collapsed structures.

The unfolding disaster is compounded by Myanmar’s complex political situation. Since the February 2021 military coup, the country has been locked in a civil conflict, with the ruling junta cracking down on dissent and battling resistance forces.
With unstable weather ahead, the people of Myanmar’s quake-hit regions are now facing a double misery: the devastation of the earthquake and the punishing force of nature raining down upon already-broken communities.
Rescue workers vow to press on, but the road ahead remains uncertain — muddy, treacherous, and heartbreakingly long.
 

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