MYANMAR EARTHQUAKE DEATH TOLL SURPASSES 3,000 AS RESCUERS SEARCH FOR SURVIVORS

KARACHI, April 3 (Bernama-Anadolu) -- Rescuers continued efforts to reach survivors as the death toll from last Friday's strong 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar exceeded 3,000 with hundreds still missing, state media reported on Thursday.

Fatalities rose to 3,003 on Wednesday, with 4,515 injured and 351 missing, Anadolu Ajansi reported Myanmar's Embassy in Japan said on Facebook.

At least 15 were killed, while 72 others remain missing in neighbouring Thailand after an under-construction skyscraper collapsed due to the earthquake with the epicentre in the Sagaing region of Myanmar.

The massive earthquakes with magnitudes 7.7 and 6.4 last Friday struck mostly the Southeast Asian nation's central region -- home to 28 million people -- toppling buildings, and leaving communities without food, water, and shelter.

Weather authorities have forecast unseasonal rains beginning on April 11, which could present a new challenge for rescue and aid workers trying to reach people in the civil war-stricken country, it added.

Some 53 aid flights have so far landed in Myanmar, while over 1,900 rescue workers arrived from 15 countries, including Southeast Asian neighbours, as well as China, India, and Russia.

On Wednesday, the country's ruling military declared a three-week ceasefire against rebels to allow rescue operations.

A statement by the military said the truce, to last until April 22, would facilitate relief operations in the wake of the disaster.

The move came after a major rebel alliance declared a ceasefire on Tuesday to assist the humanitarian efforts.

Myanmar has experienced 66 aftershocks ranging from magnitudes 2.8 to 7.5 since Friday, according to the country's Department of Meteorology and Hydrology.

-- BERNAMA-ANADOLU