The death toll from a major earthquake in Myanmar has risen to 2,056, the junta said on Monday. More than 3,900 people were injured.
A statement from a junta spokesperson said that 270 more people were still missing. It has also declared a week of national mourning and directed that national flags will fly at half-mast until April 6 “in sympathy for the loss of life and damages.”
The announcement came as the tempo and urgency of rescue efforts wound down in Mandalay, one of the worst-affected cities and the country’s second-largest, with more than 1.7 million inhabitants.
“The situation is so dire that it’s hard to express what is happening,” said Aung Myint Hussein, chief administrator of Mandalay’s Sajja North mosque.
People camped out in the streets across Mandalay for a third successive night because they were either unable to return to their ruined homes or were nervous about the repeated aftershocks that rattled the city over the weekend.