More than a month has passed since a 7.7-magnitude earthquake split my childhood city, Mandalay, Myanmar. I hoped the worst was over, yet the ground keeps shaking.
Recently, I managed a rare video call with my two aunties. The younger one, eighty-two, smiled at the screen. She happily showed her ninety-one-year-old sister, who looked at her own image in confusion and asked, “Who is that?”
A sweet moment turned to fear in seconds when their carer shouted, “Another quake! Run!” The picture shook, the wall behind them trembled, and then the call went black. In Sydney, I sat frozen, heart racing, able only to make dua for their safety.
News later confirmed a 5.1 aftershock, one of more than four hundred since the main quake. Heavy rain and strong winds have followed, bringing down half-broken walls and turning dust into mud, flooding streets and homes.
Videos from friends show minarets on the ground, pagodas split, the old palace walls crumbled, and roads torn open. The devastation is becoming more visible by the day.
Official figures now report:
• 3,600 dead, nearly 5,000 injured, and more than 200 missing
• 50,000 homes and 2,000 public buildings destroyed
The first major shock struck on the last Friday of Ramadan. More than 140 mosques collapsed and 673 worshippers died while preparing for Jumu’ah. Eid prayers a few days later were held on streets under plastic sheets.
Some Muslim families fled to Pyin Oo Lwin, only to be refused rental homes once owners learned they were Muslim. Even disaster did not stop discrimination, adding to the pain.
Aid groups warn that children who have grown up with conflict now fear every rumble. Many cling to their parents when a truck passes, convinced another quake is coming. Mental health care is almost non-existent.
This is a country already torn apart by a civil war that has lasted more than three years and is continuing. The economy has collapsed. Systems and infrastructure are in ruins.
More than 17.2 million people live in the affected region, but statistics cannot show the heartbreak of watching a four-storey home, already cracked, finally collapse after heavy rain. I saw that in a friend’s video, and it brought deep sadness.
Here in Sydney, the Burmese Muslim Association has raised over A$65,000 through donations and collections at six mosques. Thank you to everyone who has contributed — your generosity means a lot.
As the need in Myanmar grows, we’re aiming for A$100,000 in the next two weeks and ask for your continued support. If you see our volunteers at Friday prayers, please give what you can.
You can also donate by bank transfer to NSW BMA, BSB 012-010, account 450 997 899, with the reference “Earthquake Relief”.
Every dollar counts. Your contribution will help provide food, water, shelter, medical aid, and support the rebuilding of mosques and homes.
Let us stand with the people of Myanmar while the ground is still shaking. Let us keep their hope alive and help ease their pain and suffering.
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