More than 2 700 dead and over 4 500 injured - that's the death toll from last week's 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Myanmar. Local authorities estimate rising figures after the devastating quake, IPN reports.
The data is being updated as rescuers gain access to collapsed buildings, BBC reports.
Meanwhile in Bangkok, 21 people have been confirmed dead and dozens are missing.
More than two thousand monasteries and pagodas in the Sagaing region alone have reportedly collapsed completely or partially, the International Center for Buddhist Education wrote on Facebook on Monday, DPA reports.
According to IBEC, it is ''an important loss for Buddhism'' and the quake was one of the strongest ever in Sagaing. Many Buddhist structures and statues in the second-largest city of Mandalay, as well as in the famous UNESCO site of Bagan, were damaged. However, the exact extent of the damage, especially in Bagan, is not known.
According to the World Monuments Fund, information on the damage is still being gathered, but statistical data from this country in the midst of civil war is difficult to obtain. Along with the Angkor temples in Cambodia and Borobodur in Java, Bagan is one of the most important archaeological sites in Southeast Asia.
In 2016, dozens of its 3,000 structures, dating from the 9th to 13th centuries, were damaged in a 6.8-magnitude earthquake. The temple city has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2019.
Photo source: Associated Press
