Bangkok declares ‘disaster zone’, 83 trapped under collapsed building after Myanmar earthquake

Bangkok authorities declared the Thai capital a “disaster area” on Friday, after a powerful earthquake in Myanmar created tremors which caused buildings to sway dramatically and one skyscraper under construction to collapse.

Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt said the most severe damage was to a 33-storey building that was under construction in Chatuchak district. Sittipunt said three people had died, some were rescued and another 83 construction workers were trapped inside.

In Myanmar — which has declared a state of emergency — several people were said to have died in early reports from local media. One rescue worker told the BBC in Myanmar that they believed hundreds may be dead.

“At present, the earthquake may still result in aftershocks, prompting Bangkok authorities to urgently assess damaged areas, monitor at-risk zones, and provide assistance to affected residents, as well as address any ongoing dangers that may pose risks to public safety,” Bangkok City Hall said in a Google-translated statement.

Cracked buildings and bridges were being inspected for their stability, though authorities advised that people could return to buildings without severe damage. As Bangkok’s notoriously-bad traffic reached severe levels entering Friday evening, with some major highway exits closed, authorities said parks would remain open with water and toilet trucks for anyone needing shelter.

The Stock Exchange of Thailand suspended trading across all exchanges from Friday afternoon from 2:07 p.m. local time, while several major Bangkok shopping malls were shuttered for the remainder of Friday and the BTS metro system was closed.

Offices across the skyscraper-dense city were meanwhile evacuated on Friday afternoon.

Finance worker Bell Satirapraparkul told CNBC she was having lunch in the ground floor restaurant of her office in the Ratchayothin neighborhood in the north of Bangkok when she felt heavy shaking. Employees were barred from the site until Saturday at the earliest without being able to collect their cars.

Tall buildings could be seen violently swaying as water from rooftop pools poured over the side and items were thrown off.

Automaker Nissan told CNBC it had paused its manufacturing operations in Thailand until the situation was assessed as safe by Thai authorities. “Nissan put employees’ safety as a priority. As of now, we have confirmed that all employees at Nissan Thailand are safe and evacuated. We are checking if there are damages to our facilities,” a spokesperson said.

Bangkok’s hospitals were reported safe and operating as normal.

In what appeared to be the most severe incident in Thailand, one skyscraper which was under construction, collapsed. Dozens of workers were inside the building at the time of collapse, according to Thailand’s National Institute of Emergency Medicine. Injured construction workers were pictured being rescued by emergency services.

Bangkok’s main airport, Suvarnabhumi, issued an update at 8:55 a.m. U.K. time (4:55 a.m. ET) saying operations were continuing as normal. Flight data on Flightradar24 showed aircraft taking off and landing at both Bangkok airports. CNBC has contacted major airlines for updates on their operations.

In an advisory, the British Foreign Office said: “There has been a 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar, with strong tremors reported across Thailand and some damage reported to buildings in Bangkok. There may be after-shocks. If you’re in the area or planning to travel there, follow the advice of the local authorities or your tour operator and monitor local media.”

Aviation analytics agency Cirium told CNBC there had been little to no impact on flight operations in either Myanmar or Thailand so far.