In the geography, Myanmar is located in the earthquake region of the Alpide Belt which is one of the two main earthquake belts of the world. This Belt starts from the northern Mediterranean Sea in the west and extends through Himalayas. There are active and non-active. In addition, the faults appear to be locked and stress is accumulating in those segments because some large segments of the active faults have not exhibited any significant seismic activity in the past 50 to 75 years. As a result, Myanmar usually happens the big earthquakes at any time.
In fact, lifestyles are changing from that of rural agricultural life to that of crowded urban areas with industries. These include congested high-rise buildings supported by sophisticated and potentially hazardous infrastructure like electricity and water supply, waste and sewage disposal, communication and transportation systems; and dams, bridges, airfields, oil storage tanks, all required for modern living. Moreover, the big cities in Myanmar include Yangon, Mandalay and Bago located along the active Sagaing Fault. In the rural areas, the non engineered structures and dwellings are vulnerable to moderate to high-intensity earthquakes. Unlike other natural disasters, earthquakes do not occur frequently in a region and people may not experience such big earthquakes in their lifetime. Usually, people have little awareness of the disasters they never encountered before. If the information about the potential earthquakes is not spread to the local people lead to no preparation of countermeasures for prevention, there will be huge losses caused by earthquake.
As you known, it is difficult to determine the exact earthquake place at a particular time. However, the professional department can definite the information on well-understood fault lines, patterns of earthquakes, the probability of an earthquake location. Since early warning of an earthquake is not yet available, the best way forward is to have preparedness and mitigation measures adopted and applied in earthquake-prone countries like Myanmar.
Introduction to Earthquake Myanmar
First of all, you can know about the earthquake through the definition. It is a result of the breaking down of the ground and extremely rapid shifting of rocks below the earth’s surface.
Causes of earthquakes in Myanmar
Myanmar occurs many the large earthquakes as this country located in the southern part of the Himalaya and the eastern margin of the Indian Ocean. There are two main reasons leading to Earthquake in Myanmar like:
Continued subduction of the northward-moving Indian Plate underneath the Burma Platelet at an average rate of 3.5 cm/year, and Northward movement from a spreading center in the Andaman Sea. The major seismotectonics ally important faults in Myanmar are some unnamed major thrust faults in north-western Myanmar, Kabaw Fault along the Kabaw Valley in western Myanmar, the well-known Sagaing Fault close to Bago Myitkyina railway line, and the Kyaukkyi Fault situated west of Naung Cho.
Areas prone to earthquake in Myanmar Majority of the earthquakes in Myanmar are mainly confined to three zones. The intermediate-focus earthquakes are the zone along the western fold belt of Myanmar where the earthquake frequency is much higher in the northern part. The zone along the Sagaing Fault, including the offshore part in the Andaman Sea with shallow-focus earthquakes; the earthquake frequency is higher in three segments, Bago-Taungoo, Sagaing-Tagaung, and Myitkyina Putao Segments.
After the zone in the north-eastern part of Myanmar happens, the earthquakes in southern Yunnan operates. The five seismic zones are demarcated and named. The highest intensity zone designated for Myanmar is the Zone with probable maximum range of ground acceleration 0.4 – 0.5 g. There are four areas occurring the big causes such as Bago-Phyu, Mandalay, Putao-Tanaing, and Kale-Homalin. Because the two places usually happen the earthquake so local people live in there are little. Important cities and towns that lie in Zone IV are Taungoo, Taungdwingyi, Kyaukse, Pyin Oo Lwin, Shwebo, Hkamti, Hakha, Myitkyina, and Kunglong. Yangon straddles the boundary between Zone II and Zone III, with the old and new satellite towns in the eastern part in Zone III, and the original city in Zone II. Some largest cities like Yangon, Mandalay and Bago located in the earthquake-prone areas, the information about earthquake forecast is very important. In other states and divisions, although they are sparsely populated, most of the dwellings are still non-engineered structures and not incorporated earthquake resistant measures, they are thus vulnerable to moderate to high-intensity earthquakes.
Major earthquakes in Myanmar with damage data.
According to data collected by Myanmar Earthquake Committee, during the period 1839-2008, about 16 major earthquakes with Richter Scale (RS) > 7.0 happened in Myanmar. More importantly, Myanmar capitals were located along the Sagaing fault zone which is the principal source of consequence. According to historical records, ancient capitals of Myanmar around the Mandalay area, Amarapura, Ava, and Sagaing, were severely devastated by big earthquakes.
Since Myanmar was very sparsely populated and most of her population lived in rural areas in the past, disasters and fatalities caused during the earthquakes were considered negligible to be officially recorded. Buddhist shrines, pagodas and zedis were destroyed by every earthquake. Some of the damages infamous ancient pagodas are shown in photographs when you see.
The big one
The Sagaing Fault is the biggest one of Earthquake in Myanmar which causes up to 10 million people to disaster. In the population report, the government projects Yangon’s 5.2 million population to almost double by 2040 by the movement from rural to urban migration increasing.
You will admire the giant city with the infrastructure characterized by British colonial relics and cheap modern blocks built over decades of regulatory chaos, struggles to cope even with day to day activity.
According to the professional department, Yangon is located on a large quake. The vice chair of the Myanmar Earthquake Committee supposed that a 7.0-and-above earthquake is 80-100 years. The last one had happened since 1930, it killed more than 550 people. Hence, the government is becoming more aware of the threat.
Safety Tips on Earthquake
Before an earthquake
● To follow carefully the status of the earthquake
● To make sure that all people know how to react to the earthquake.
● To know the safe area such as under a sturdy table, against the interior wall and under a door frame.
● To participate in the protection earthquake activities to clear the processing. Sit down under desk, hold on to its leg, and protect your eyes and head. Practicing will make these actions an automatic response. Responding quickly and automatically will help to protect in the emergency.
● To clear the arrangement of tools in the building to avoid the heavy objects.
● To go to the safe places outdoors away from buildings, bridges, trees, telephone and electric post and overpasses.
● To identify exits and alternative exits in order to leave the workplace in emergency situations. Before getting out of the building; you need to check if the planned exits are clear of obstacles.
● To know the location of the shutoff valves for water, gas, and electricity.
● To remind all family members, friends, colleagues the information of the earthquake when adults are at work and children are at school.
Make the home a safe:
● To keep heavy furnishings such as cupboards and bookcases, pictures and mirrors on the walls to prevent them from falling and injuring persons.
● To keep heavy object and breakables on lower shelves to prevent serious injuries.
● To store all flammables or hazardous liquids outside the house, in their proper containers, away from structures since earthquakes may trigger fires or explosions within the building.
● To brace overhead light fixtures to prevent them from falling during the earthquake.
● To close the windows, as protection from flying glass, especially for windows that are near the bed in the event of an earthquake occurring at night while people are asleep.
Reserve some necessary items during the earthquake:
● Food and drinking water.
● First-aid kit and essential medicine.
● Flashlight with extra batteries, keep them in several locations.
● Portable radio with extra batteries as it is the best source of information about the earthquake.
● Don’t forget to store adequate supplies in the vehicle during driving.
During an earthquake
You should remember that, if you stay indoors, must stay indoors and if you are outdoors, must stay outdoors.
If you are indoor
● To move away from windows, doors, or heavy objects that could fall. Remember that most fatal injuries are head wounds.
● To leave a building, do so in an orderly manner. Don’t get out quickly.
If you are outdoors:
● To move to a clear area away from the trees, signs, buildings, electrical wires and poles.
If you are in a vehicle:
● To remain inside until the shaking stops and avoid buildings and others like that which landslides may occur. Be cautious of possible road damages while proceeding.
After an earthquake
● To check yourself for injuries and protect yourself from further injuries caused by broken objects.
● To check the buildings for damages before leaving the building if it is seriously damaged or prone to collapse during the aftershock.
● To keep away from buildings, electricity wires, stairs and walls which are liable to collapse.
● If there is heavy smoke, let’s get out of the building.
● To turn off electrical switches and use battery operated flashlights as they lead to trigger fire.
Inspect the utilities in the buildings. Shut off their valves if there is damage.
● If water pipes are damaged, avoid using water from the tap as it may be unsafe.
● To clean up spilled medicine, gasoline or other inflammable liquids immediately.
● To leave the area if you smell gas or fumes from other chemicals.
● To check others for injuries, give first aid.
● To be prepared for aftershocks.
● To be alert for the flood due to leakage of dams.
