Thursday, 3 April 2025

Myanmar: Public Health Situation Analysis (Sagaing earthquake in Myanmar, April 2025)

On 28 March 2025 two powerful earthquakes struck central Myanmar’s Sagaing Region near Mandalay. The first, with a magnitude of 7.7, occurred at 12:50, followed by a second of magnitude 6.4 at 13:02 (local time). The full scale of damage, deaths and injuries has not yet been fully ascertained.

On 2 April 2025, the State Administration Council (SAC) reported that 3003 people have died and 4515 have been injured by the earthquake. Preliminary assessments indicate high numbers of casualties and trauma-related injuries, with urgent need for emergency care. Earthquake-related displacement, limited access to safe water and food, overcrowded displaced populations, low vaccination coverage, poor sanitation, inadequate disease prevention measures and potential movement of rodents into urban areas increases the likelihood of disease outbreaks. Mental health challenges and heat strokes are also major concern.

The worst affected areas are Mandalay, Sagaing and Nay Pyi Taw, followed by Bago, Magway, Shan South and East. The earthquakes caused widespread destruction across central Myanmar. Critical infrastructure — including health facilities, road networks, and bridges — has been severely damaged. Electricity and water supplies remain disrupted, worsening access to health services and heightening risks of waterborne and foodborne disease outbreaks (WHO, 2025).

The epicentre of the earthquake is close to Sagaing Township in Sagaing Region. This region is home to approximately one third of the country’s internally displaced population, many of whom were already enduring critical shortages in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) needs, and lacked adequate shelter from before the earthquake struck.

This earthquake has struck amid an already dire humanitarian context marked by widespread displacement, fragile health systems, and disease outbreaks following the February 2021 takeover. Prior to the earthquake, 19.9 million people in Myanmar required humanitarian assistance, including 12.9 million who were in need of health services.

This is the initial PHSA for the Sagaing earthquake in Myanmar, based on initial information available. The PHSA will be updated as more information becomes available.

The main health concerns based on this initial PHSA are:

Trauma and injuries: The earthquake has significantly increased trauma cases, overwhelming already strained health-care facilities. Limited access to emergency care, surgical interventions and rehabilitation services poses a severe risk to survivors. The high patient influx and resource constraints challenge timely care. The urgent need for medical supplies, surgical teams, is critical to managing physical and psychological trauma.
Mental health: The earthquake exacerbates the mental health challenges because of its sudden and traumatic nature, leading to widespread disruption and amplifying feelings of fragility in an already vulnerable setting.
Cholera and water-borne diseases: Mandalay’s prior cholera outbreak, combined with earthquake’s impact on WASH infrastructure and limited access to safe water.
Vaccine-preventable diseases: Vaccine-preventable diseases (e.g. measles, polio, diphtheria) Immunization coverage has been very low in Sagaing and some townships in Mandalay, posing high risk of VPD outbreaks. Tetanus may also increase as heightened exposure to soils following the earthquake.
Vector-borne diseases: Malaria: limited/no access to diagnostic, treatment and prevention commodities and services will likely increase the risk in rural areas. Dengue: highest risk in urban/peri-urban areas. Limited healthcare access hampers early diagnosis and treatment, increasing severe cases.
Earthquake-related displacement, limited access to safe water and food, overcrowded displaced populations, poor sanitation, inadequate disease prevention measures and potential movement of rodents into urban areas increases the likelihood of water-borne, vector-borne, and airborne disease transmission and risk of plague re-emergence. Incidence of skin diseases is very likely to increase.

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