As of Wednesday 2nd April, the death toll from the 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Myanmar has climbed to 2,886, with 4,639 people injured and 373 still reported missing, according to the Myanmar State Administration Council’s (SAC) information team.
MSF teams are on the ground in Mandalay & Naypyidaw. They are still assessing the needs while implementing quick actions such as deploying water tanks, installing related piping materials, pressure pumps and distributing waste bins. We are actively mobilizing our resources on this crisis and in communication with the relevant authorities. Our medical humanitarian staff in Myanmar and neighbouring countries are preparing to respond at scale to the needs of affected communities. Communication is on-going with all relevant stakeholders, including the Ministry of Health, reaffirming our commitment and capacity to scale up quickly and support on-going response efforts in Mandalay and Naypyitaw, and all other areas impacted.
Our assessment teams are made up of medical, logistics and water and sanitation profiles. It’s still difficult to know the full scale of damage and medical needs because communication blackouts and access barriers exist in the hardest-hit areas due to ongoing conflict. However, on the basis of very preliminary findings so far: Lots of structures have been damaged and everyone is looking for basic items such as water. There is limited electricity. More detailed information from the assessment teams will come over the next few days. However, MSF is primarily focused on understanding the need for emergency trauma care within the existing health system, including life- and limb-saving surgeries for crush injuries resulting from building collapses. Additionally, they are determining which hospitals are operational and which are not, and identifying where support is needed. Crucially, they are also assessing the current water and sanitation situation.
