Hello and welcome to NewsHour from the BBC World Service.
Coming live from London, this is Owen Bennett Jones.
The earthquake in Myanmar was huge.
So big
that the military authorities have overcome their normal ideas about self reliance and have asked
for help.
The epicenter was near the city of mandalay and just 10 km from the surface.
The earthquake also hit Thailand.
And since Bangkok is a much more open city than any in Myanmar,
many of the images of the damage caused by the earthquake so far have come from there and they show substantial damage to high rise buildings.
We'll hear more from Bangkok later in the program, but first to Myanmar.
We've been sent this testimony of a man who was rescuing people in the Mandalay area close to the epicenter.
He wants to remain anonymous for fear of the military.
So.
So one of our producers read what he said.
I have seen more than a hundred people dead in one village alone.
Buildings in Amarapua and Tadayu are completely collapsed.
People there need medical teams and small earthquakes are still happening.
Everyone is on the field and the roads as they're afraid of the aftershocks.
I am part of the residents that are helping in the rescue.