At least 1,700 people were killed, 3,400 injured and more than 300 are missing after a powerful earthquake shook the south-east Asian country of Myanmar on Friday.
Rescue teams and aid was rushed to the war-torn nation of 55 million people formerly known as Burma in the wake of the 7.7-magnitude quake, the strongest in more than 100 years, which also affected neighbouring countries like Thailand.
Buildings collapsed and infrastructure, such as bridges, highways, airports and railways, was damaged in the country, which has been controlled by the military since a coup in 2021 and has been ravaged by a continuing civil war.
"The destruction has been extensive, and humanitarian needs are growing by the hour," the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies was quoted by Reuters as saying in a statement.
The situation is so dire that junta chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing made a rare call for international assistance after warning that the death toll could rise in the nation, which is bordered by India, China, Thailand, Laos and Bangladesh.
The death toll could eventually exceed 10,000, according to the U.S. Geological Survey's predictive modelling, Reuters reported.
People slept on the streets and in the open because concrete buildings had become unsafe. Patients were lying on the ground as hospitals had collapsed.
Residents spoke of the smell of death as the extreme heat accelerated the decomposition of bodies trapped under the buildings.
India, China and Thailand are among the nations that have sent relief materials and teams while Malaysia, Singapore and Russia have sent aid and people.
Media carried harrowing reports of people desperately yelling out to relatives they believed to be trapped under rubble.
"Ploy, Ploy, Ploy, my daughter, I'm here for you now!" one woman wailed, as she was hugged by two others, according to a Reuters story.
"Ploy, can you hear me calling out for you?"
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