President Sheikh Mohamed directs UAE to send search and rescue team to help Myanmar earthquake survivors

Team is being sent as a gesture of solidarity and brotherhood

President Sheikh Mohamed has directed a search and rescue team to help earthquake survivors in Myanmar. Hamad Al Kaabi / UAE Presidential Court

A search and rescue team from the UAE, made up of members of Abu Dhabi Police, the National Guard and Joint Operations Command, is to help survivors of the earthquake that shook Myanmar on Friday.

The team has been directed provide assistance by President Sheikh Mohamed, state news agency Wam reported on Monday.

The initiative stems from “the UAE’s commitment to providing immediate relief to communities suffering from the aftermath of natural disasters anywhere in the world as a gesture of solidarity and brotherhood”, it said.

The move to send rescuers “reflects the nation’s international humanitarian obligations, and its mission to extend a helping hand to those in need”, Wam added.

On Saturday, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs extended its sincere condolences to the governments and people of Myanmar and Thailand and the families of the victims of the tragedy, as well as its wishes for a speedy recovery for all those injured, Wam reported.

Rising death toll and widespread damage

More than 1,700 deaths have been recorded since the 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck near Myanmar's second-largest city, Mandalay. Rescue teams continue to search for survivors.

The tremor hit at a shallow depth of 10km, north-west of the city of Sagaing in central Myanmar, and was followed minutes later by a 6.4-magnitude aftershock.

Buildings were flattened, bridges collapsed and roads across Myanmar cracked. A 30-storey skyscraper under construction hundreds of kilometres away in Bangkok, Thailand, was destroyed. The tremors also caused a dam to burst.

The aftermath of the earthquake was complicated by damage to Myanmar's infrastructure and communication networks, a UN agency said on Sunday.

The quake has stalled internet services, disrupted airport operations and damaged roads, making it difficult to assess needs and the overall situation, the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs said.

“In some places, some buildings collapsed,” Myanmar's junta chief Min Aung Hlaing said in a televised speech, after visiting a hospital in the capital, Naypyidaw. “I would like to invite any country, any organisation, or anyone in Myanmar to come and help. Thank you.”

International aid

The earthquake was felt across the region, with China, Cambodia, Bangladesh and India all reporting tremors.

India, France and the European Union all offered to provide assistance, while the WHO said it was mobilising its logistics hub in Dubai to prepare trauma injury supplies.

Pope Francis said he was “deeply saddened by the loss of life and widespread devastation” in a telegram published by the Vatican.

The Red Cross said downed power lines were adding to challenges for their teams trying to reach Mandalay and Sagaing regions and southern Shan state.