SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): It took three nerve-racking hours after a powerful earthquake struck on Friday (March 28) before Hein Htet Zaw could get through to his family in Myanmar.

The 27-year-old was in Peninsula Plaza shopping centre – dubbed Singapore’s Little Myanmar – when he heard that his home city Mandalay had been rocked by the 7.7-magnitude temblor.

However, he said his heart is “broken” over the extensive damage in his hometown, a sentiment echoed by many of his countrymen when ST visited Peninsula Plaza on March 29.

A Burmese quality specialist who wanted to be known only as Ms Aung said: “It is already difficult to access essential needs in Myanmar, so now with the earthquake, it’s worse. The hospitals are overwhelmed and it’s very difficult for rescue teams to reach there.”

Myanmar has been embroiled in a civil war likely to complicate rescue operations since 2021, when the military junta staged a coup. It has since put out a rare call for aid “from any country”.

Though all her kin are unharmed, the 29-year-old said she was worried and sad for her compatriots. She plans to donate money for aid.

The disaster on March 28 has killed more than 1,000 people, injured close to 2,000, and downed critical infrastructure in Myanmar. The figures are expected to jump, with the US Geological Survey estimating the death toll could exceed 10,000, apart from severe economic losses.

Tremors were felt in Vietnam and China, while a state of emergency was declared in Thai capital Bangkok, where at least nine people died.

Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-largest city, lies close to the epicentre and was the worst hit.

Wilt Yee, who works as a cleaner in Singapore, has been anxiously posting near-constant updates on the precarious situation on Facebook for her friends and family in Mandalay.

The 39-year-old plans to give $1,000 to monasteries to help with relief work, she said. Her friends here, including a Singaporean, have already passed her some $300.

Meanwhile, a caregiver based in Singapore said her father had dashed back home from his workplace in Mandalay to look for her mother, who has walking difficulties.

The woman, who declined to give her name and age, said her parents have to cope with limited water and electricity supplies now.

“I wish I was back in Myanmar with my family but I can only get updates through them,” she lamented. - The Straits Times/ANN