Urgent prayer: Myanmar earthquake

Please pray for all affected by the severe earthquake impacting Myanmar, Thailand and China in which hundreds are feared dead.

Please urgently pray for all affected by the earthquakes that have devastated parts of Myanmar, as well as parts of Thailand and China.

Just before 1pm (local time) on Friday 28 March, two back-to-back earthquakes struck Myanmar. The first earthquake, with magnitude 7.7, centred around Sagaing City, the capital of the north western Sagaing region of Myanmar. The earthquake has had a severe impact on Myanmar, and also on neighbouring countries Thailand and China.  

More than 1,000 have died in Myanmar, and the number of casualties is feared to be far higher. The earthquakes have also destroyed many buildings and significant bridges.

“I felt the tremors and rushed out along with my children in panic,” says Daw Sun*, a local believer. “In a few minutes, we saw our house crumbling down. We just watched it collapsing in front of our eyes, helplessly. We are afraid to go inside our home now.”

Destroyed buildings and power cuts

The injured are being treated in halls, rooms, and at the roadside due to a lack of space in the hospitals, which were also badly impacted by the tremors.  

Roads, airports, buildings, temples, churches and hospitals are badly destroyed in the country, disrupting the infrastructure and causing major power cuts across Myanmar.

According to a local source, “There is no electricity, and the water supply is not functioning. It’s becoming a challenge to even go to the toilet. We do not know when the electricity will be restored. Even Wi-Fi connections are unstable. Only one phone service provider is working in earthquake-affected areas. SIM cards have become expensive and are costing 20 times the normal price.”

People find it difficult to travel on damaged roads and are helplessly stranded in many areas. Many are unable to return home due to disrupted transportation and severely affected roads. 

Pastor Caleb* owns a building in Central Myanmar. He shelters believers who need refuge in and uses the top floor of the building as a devotion hall and a study area for young people. He shares, “The impact of the earthquake was so devastating that the building walls developed cracks. It resulted in severe damage to the top-floor devotion hall, where the ceiling had caved in, and furniture lay toppled and broken. A young boy’s leg was severely injured as he attempted to escape the building.”

Open Doors local partner shares prayer requests

“Please pray for the safety of people in the midst of natural disaster and war,” says Daisy Htun*, an Open Doors local partner in the region. Ongoing conflict was already making the country extremely volatile, particularly for religious minorities.

She was able to give an update on Open Doors partners and their communities: “Landline communication is disrupted, and locals are facing challenges in communicating with each other. The building of our local partners who take care of children is damaged but, hopefully, there are no casualties. A church in Naypyitaw is also damaged. One of our training sessions finished just before the earthquake hit the area. Our partners living in apartment buildings are evacuating for safety.”

State of emergency

Following the earthquake, Myanmar’s military government declared six areas in a state of emergency: Mandalay Division, Bago Division, Shan State, Magway Division, Sagaing Division, and capital city Naypyitaw.

“So far, we know that the Mandalay airport has also been damaged. In Shan State, we have heard that a church was affected,” shares Daisy Htun*. “In Naypyitaw, the intensity was very high – one church was damaged, and we heard that the pastor and two deacons were hurt. In Sagaing Division, we haven’t yet heard from our partners, but this is the conflict zone. In most of the areas here, the internet is still cut, so we are not able to receive information quickly.”

She adds: “Shan State is controlled by ethnic armed groups, and there are already many internally displaced people there brought about by the war. If the buildings have already been damaged by the earthquake, especially in Aung Ban City and Taungoo City, then more people could have probably been displaced.”

Please keep praying

Daisy continues to ask for prayers. “The people right now, believers and non-believers alike, are in a state of hopelessness, thinking of their own survival. For the Christians in Myanmar, those who have already been affected by the war, and those who have been displaced, this may have a compounding effect – they have already experienced the coup, there is economic hardship, and now, a natural disaster has befallen them.

“If God can use the crows to bring Elijah food in the wilderness, then God can use anything to bring comfort and help to them. Let us pray that they are able to experience God’s goodness and remember that God does not abandon them. Pray too for the churches in Myanmar in areas that have not been affected – that they will have compassion and be able to extend a helping hand to their brothers and sisters affected by this earthquake.”

Despite the heaviness, Daisy is comforted by your prayers. “I share to believers when I meet them that, even though things are terrible and it’s easy to be isolated, we are not alone, and that there are people around the world praying for us.”

“We want to thank our brothers and sisters for their prayers and concern,” says a local Christian. “We feel comforted and not isolated.”

Please join in praying for all those affected by this earthquake.

*Names changed for security reasons