A Malaysian man living in Bangkok became an unlikely hero when he helped an elderly woman descend 40 flights of stairs after a powerful earthquake rocked Myanmar and Thailand.

Khen Han Ming, 41, who lives in the tallest residential tower in Nonthaburi province, about 30 minutes from Bangkok, was on a call with his girlfriend when the 7.4-magnitude quake struck central Myanmar.

“I thought I was dizzy at first, that maybe it was my blood pressure, but then I saw the whole building swaying. Water was pouring down from the rooftop pool like a waterfall. It was surreal,” he told FMT.

Despite the panic that had set in, he managed to put on a pair of trousers and grabbed essential items, including his passport, wallet and phone, before dashing to the condominium’s emergency staircase.

As he made his way down the 57-storey building, he spotted an elderly woman and her daughter struggling to descend.

“She reminded me of my mum. I just couldn’t leave her there. She had a heart condition and was already praying and asking for help,” he said.

Khen stayed with the woman all the way down, occasionally carrying her when she was too weak to walk. “I don’t want to exaggerate and say I carried her the whole way, but I held her, supported her, and made sure she got down safely,” he added.

Parts of the ceiling were falling and cracks formed along the walls as they made their way down the stairs with many other occupants for over 30 minutes.

“It felt like being in a box on a ship, and the ship was swaying side to side,” he said.

Once outside, Khen said he borrowed a wheelchair to take the woman to safety at a nearby market, about 200m away.

Khen, who was recently laid off from his job, said the experience left a deep impact on him. “After all this, I just felt like crying. I told myself, ‘If I’m going to die, I want to at least die helping someone.'”

He said checks on his condo unit showed no major damage, though residents have been asked to report cracks or structural issues.

The massive earthquake, which struck about 55km southwest of Mandalay, Myanmar, caused several deaths across the region and toppled buildings in both Myanmar and Thailand.

Khen said his only regret in this whole ordeal was not being better prepared. “At first, I ran out in my underwear. I didn’t even think about grabbing shoes. This has taught me how unprepared we are for disasters like this. Everyone should have a go-bag near the door,” he said.

BANGKOK - Palang Merah di Myanmar melaporkan kerosakan teruk susulan gempa bumi kuat yang melanda negara itu pada Jumaat, menurut agensi berita Jerman (dpa).

Persekutuan Antarabangsa Persatuan Palang Merah dan Bulan Sabit Merah (IFRC) telah berhubung dengan kakitangan di wilayah terjejas, kata pengurus program IFRC di lokasi, Marie Manrique.

Terdapat kebimbangan besar bahawa empangan di Sungai Irrawaddy mungkin mengalami kerosakan dan berisiko pecah.

Menurut Manrique, seramai 18.5 juta orang tinggal di kawasan terjejas berhampiran bandar Sagaing, di mana dua gempa bumi - masing-masing dianggarkan dengan magnitud 7.7 dan 6.4 - direkodkan pada Jumaat.

Ramai daripada mereka kehilangan tempat tinggal akibat konflik berterusan sejak rampasan kuasa tentera pada 2021.

Menurut Pejabat Pesuruhjaya Tinggi Pertubuhan Bangsa-Bangsa Bersatu bagi Pelarian (UNHCR), kira-kira 1.6 juta daripada 3.5 juta penduduk yang kehilangan tempat tinggal di Myanmar tinggal di wilayah terjejas gempa.

"Kami sangat bimbang tentang kemungkinan akibat kemanusiaan," kata Manrique. "Kami menjangkakan ramai yang cedera." - Bernama-dpa

BANGKOK: Bangkok ground to a halt on Friday after a strong earthquake shook the clogged Thai capital, causing chaos and triggering city-wide evacuations that left many thousands of people stranded for much of the day.

All urban rail systems were suspended and roads were gridlocked across one of Asia's biggest cities after the quake in neighbouring Myanmar caused tremors up to a magnitude of 7.1 in Bangkok, about 1,020km from the epicentre.

The quake killed nine people in Bangkok, including eight labourers who died after the collapse of a 33-storey building that was under construction.

Rescuers with dogs searched for signs of life, with more than 100 missing at the site, authorities said.

Foreign tourists, some shirtless, in bathrobes or swim shorts, had to leave their hotels and mingled with throngs of office workers evacuated from high-rise towers in Bangkok's commercial districts, many in shock at a rare quake that caused some skyscrapers to sway for minutes.

Huge crowds gathered outside plush hotels, offices and malls, and were shepherded away from tall buildings by security personnel. Many were directed towards the sprawling Lumpini Park after warnings of aftershocks, 11 of which struck the city within three and a half hours of the quake.

"I ran from the 7th floor of a mall, it was chaos. The scene was like the end of the world. People screamed and ran to find somewhere to shelter," said school teacher Yupadee Anujan, 34, who took refuge in the park.

"There were siren sounds ringing constantly .... this made me more frightened, so I tried to walk to the park as quickly as I could."

Videos shared on social media showed white water pouring down the sides of the 37-floor Intercontinental Hotel as the tremors emptied its rooftop swimming pool.

Authorities in the city of more than 11 million people had received 169 calls reporting damage to buildings by late afternoon. Temporary shelters were set up around the city for people unable to access their homes.

Buses were packed, motorcycles jostled for inches to squeeze through and sidewalks were crammed with workers trying in vain to hail taxis as traffic ground to a halt.

Vehicles on major thoroughfares were bumper-to-bumper. Many people abandoned the roads to make long journeys home on foot.

"Just got to know the term 'disaster victim' for real today... first and last time, please," posted one social media user who took three hours to walks 8km home.

Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt ordered four of the city's biggest parks to stay open all night and provide food, water and refuge for thousands of people unable to get home.

Among those was Natcha, who was camped out in Lumpini park late at night. She said she was scared to go back to her 10th-floor office.

"When the quake happened and the shaking was most intense, I was not quite sure if I'd survive," said Natcha, who declined to give her full name.

"The shaking was so intense."

ENEVA - Pertubuhan Kesihatan Sedunia (WHO) menggerakkan hab logistik di Dubai bagi menyediakan bekalan perubatan kecederaan dan trauma susulan gempa bumi kuat melanda Myanmar Jumaat lalu.

Jurucakapnya, Margaret Harris berkata, badan kesihatan dunia itu telah mengaktifkan tindak balas pengurusan kecemasan susulan insiden ini dilihat sebagai satu bencara besar yang memberi ancaman serius terhadap kehidupan dan kesihatan penduduk.

“Kami telah mengaktifkan pusat logistik bagi menyalurkan bekalan perubatan kecemasan memandangkan jumlah mangsa cedera akibat gempa bumi ini dijangka tinggi.

“Kami turut menitiberatkan penghantaran bekalan ubat-ubatan penting kerana bimbang sekiranya infrastruktur kesihatan di Myanmar mungkin berdepan kerosakan teruk,” katanya.

Pada Jumaat, Sinar Harian melaporkan gempa bumi kuat bermagnitud 7.7 menggegarkan Myanmar dan Thailand hingga meragut lebih 20 nyawa serta merosakkan banggunan dan jambutan.

Gegaran cetek itu berlaku di barat laut Sagaing, Myanmar dan diikuti dengan gegeran susulan bermagnitud 6.4 beberapa minit kemudian.

Di Myanmar, hospital di Naypyidaw menerima ratusan mangsa cedera, dengan pihak berkuasa mengesahkan sekurang-kurangnya 20 kematian.

Hospital berdepan kesukaran apabila pintu masuk jabatan kecemasan runtuh dan petugas kesihatan terpaksa merawat pesakit di luar bangunan.

Di Thailand, tiga maut dan 81 lagi masih hilang selepas sebuah bangunan pencakar langit yang sedang dalam pembinaan runtuh berhampiran Pasar Chatuchak, Bangkok.

Tambah Harris, WHO mempunyai pengalaman daripada gemba bumi Turkiye-Syria pada 2023 yang menjadikan mereka lebih arif dan jelas terhadap keperluan bantuan utama perlu dihantar terlebih dahulu.