Myanmar: Healthcare System Overwhelmed by Casualties Following Catastrophic Earthquake

Naypyidaw, March 31 (NationPress) The healthcare system in Myanmar is facing severe challenges as it attempts to manage a surge in casualties, with the death toll tragically rising to 2,056 on Monday after a powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake wreaked havoc across multiple regions of the nation.

According to media sources, the two most populous cities, Mandalay and Naypyidaw, are struggling to accommodate the influx of patients.

"The hospital is consistently crowded with patients, even in normal times. During this crisis, there’s barely enough room or resources to treat everyone arriving. Yet, the staff continue their duties despite the workforce shortage," stated a woman in her 50s from Naypyidaw during an interview.

Reports indicate that four years of military rule have led to a dire state of the healthcare system. Even before the earthquake struck last Friday, numerous hospitals were already facing significant challenges.

In Mandalay, around 80 percent of medical personnel participated in the Civil Disobedience Movement against the junta. This area has been particularly affected as seven private hospitals in the city lost their licenses for employing former government hospital staff recently.

"Some private hospitals in Mandalay had already suspended operations prior to the earthquake due to orders from the junta. Most remaining private hospitals have sustained damage and are unable to operate, forcing nearly all to shut down," a doctor in Yangon informed the media outlet Myanmar Now.

Witnesses at the regime-operated Mandalay General Hospital recounted chaotic scenes following the quake, with patients lying on the floor due to insufficient beds.

"From the entrance, all I could see were patients spread out everywhere, covered in blood. Some doctors appeared overwhelmed and unable to provide assistance," a witness reported to Myanmar Now.

As of Monday, the death toll from Friday's earthquake in Myanmar has reached 2,056, with approximately 3,900 people injured and nearly 270 reported missing, according to the State Administration Council Information Team, as reported by Xinhua News Agency.

Myanmar's Department of Meteorology and Hydrology announced that there have been 36 aftershocks, with magnitudes ranging from 2.8 to 7.5, as of Monday morning.

A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake, followed by a 6.4 magnitude aftershock mere minutes later, struck the Mandalay region of Myanmar on Friday, causing extensive casualties and destruction across several areas.