LIFE RETURNS TO RHYTHM IN BANGKOK AFTER QUAKE

By Wilawan Watcharasakwet

BANGKOK, March 31 (Bernama) -- Life has resumed its rhythm in Bangkok. Three days after a powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Myanmar sent tremors through the Thai capital, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) reports the city has almost fully recovered.

Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt confirmed that traffic has returned to normal on all routes, including the Yellow and Pink Line railways and both directions of the Din Daeng Expressway.

"However, minor disruptions remain on Kamphaeng Phet 2 Road near the site of a collapsed building in Chatuchak District and at the crane dismantling site in Bang Pho, Bang Sue District," he told reporters at the Bangkok Emergency Command Centre at the BMA headquarters, on Monday.

The earthquake, which struck Myanmar on Friday, has claimed 18 lives, with dozens still reported missing in Thailand.

Chadchart urged the public to remain calm and not to panic, emphasising that residual aftershocks from the recent earthquake were minor and had little impact on Thailand, to the extent that they were barely perceptible.

He further explained that buildings that withstood Friday’s earthquake remain structurally sound.

"The weight of people inside a building is negligible compared to the building’s total structural load. If a building can support its own weight, the likelihood of collapse is extremely low," he said.

He added that an initial inspection by the BMA of structural damage in Bangkok revealed two buildings deemed unsafe for occupancy, affecting approximately 2,000 residents as of Monday.

He said temporary accommodations have been arranged, with 172 individuals currently using these facilities.

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra stated that the Minister of Interior, in his capacity as the National Commander for Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, has downgraded the disaster severity level from Level 3 (major disaster management) to Level 2 (moderate disaster management).

Meanwhile, the Bangkok Emergency Medical Centre, better known as the Erawan Centre, reported that the death toll from the collapsed building in Chatuchak District has risen to 11, with over 70 people still missing and believed to be trapped in the rubble.

Last Friday, the construction site for the new headquarters of the State Audit Office, located in Chatuchak District near Bang Sue Grand Station, collapsed following the powerful earthquake in Myanmar, which also caused significant tremors in Bangkok.

-- BERNAMA