They once called it “The City of Gold”, but for days the air in its former royal capital Myanmar and second largest city, Mandalei, smells death after the murder earthquake.
Testimonies report to the BBC How so many corpses had accumulated from the 7.7 Richter earthquake that hit Mandalay last Friday last Friday. “They are buried in stacks.”
The death toll from the earthquake and a series of aftershocks has exceeded 2,700, while 4,521 are injured and hundreds are still missing, the Myanmar Army leader said. These numbers are expected to increase.
Residents of the country’s second most crowded city say that they have spent alert nights wandering on the streets in despair, as food and water stocks are diminishing.
A resident of Mandalei lost her aunt in the earthquake. “But her corpse was recovered from the ruins just two days later, on March 30,” said the 23 -year -old student who wanted to become known only as J.
Bad infrastructures and a patchwork of civil conflicts make it difficult to hinder the attempt to send aid to Myanmar, where the army has a history of suppressing the scale of national disasters. The death toll is expected to continue to grow as rescuers gain access to more collapsed buildings and cut off neighborhoods.
Many residents live outside scenes or on the streetsfearing that what is left of their homes will not withstand the aftershocks.
“I have seen many people, including myself, to bend over and crying loudly on the streets,” said J.
But they are still survivors in the city. The Fire Department announced that it has rescued 403 people in Mandalei over the last four days and has pulled 259 corpses. The actual number of victims is believed to be much greater than the official version.
In a televised speech on Tuesday, Army Chief Minis Aung Hlating said the death toll could exceed 3,000, but the US Geological Survey said on Friday that “a number of dead more than 10,000 is very likely” based on its location and location.
Young children have been mentally injured after the disaster.
“Yesterday we saw corpses coming out of collapsing buildings in our neighborhood,” says Ruate, who lives in the Pyigyitagon area.
“It’s very disappointing. Myanmar has been affected by so many disasters, other natural and other human. Everyone is so tired. We feel desperate and helpless. “
A monk who lives near the Sky Villa apartment building, one of the most affected buildings and reduced from 12 to six floors due to the earthquake, told the BBC that while some people were recovered alive, “only corpses have been recovered” in the last 24 hours.
“I hope this will end soon. There are many [πτώματα] Still inside, I think more than a hundred, “he said.
The crematoriums near Mandalei have been overloaded, and authorities have run out of bodies for corpses, including supplies, such as food and drinking water.
Throughout the city, the remnants of damaged gold towers are on the streets.
While Mandalei was a Significant Center for Gold Leaf and Popular Tourist Destination, Poverty in the city has been launched in recent years, as well as elsewhere in Myanmar (formerly Burma).
On Tuesday, Myanmar kept a minute’s silence in memory of the victims, in the context of a week of national mourning. The junta demanded that the flags be waved, to stop the media broadcasts and asked people to pay tribute.
Even before the earthquake, more than 3.5 million people had been displaced within the country. Thousands of others, many of whom young, have fled abroad to avoid forced recruitment – this means that there are fewer people now available to help relief and subsequent rebuilding of the country.
OR Russia and the Chinawhich have helped to support Myanmar’s military regime, are among the countries that have sent help and special support.
While the junta had stated that every help is welcome, some humanitarian workers reported difficulties in accessing earthquake -stricken areas.
Local media in Sagaing, at the center of the earthquake, said that military authorities have imposed restrictions that require organizations to submit lists of volunteers and objects that want to bring to the area.
The junta has also been criticized because she continues to open fire in villages, even now that Myanmar is suffering from disaster.