‘We were the lucky ones', says Burmese student after home damaged in earthquake
A Burmese student in the UK, whose home was damaged in the Myanmar earthquake, says his family consider themselves lucky compared to others.
Aung Kaung Myat, a mechanical engineering student at the University of Sussex, was unable to contact his parents for several hours after he first heard the news of the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that hit his country on Friday.
Mr Kaung Myat, from Mandalay, Myanmar's second-largest city near the epicentre where hundreds of buildings have collapsed, said the real concern is for those who have lost everything.
'My family is safe right now, which I'm incredibly grateful for, but like many others, they've been deeply affected,' the 23-year-old student told the PA news agency.
'Our home has been damaged but compared to what others are going through, we would consider ourselves lucky.
'The real concern is for those who have lost everything and those who've been injured, displaced and struggling to get even basic medical care and also food and even water.'
According to state media, more than 2,000 people have been killed so far, with more than 3,900 injured and about 270 missing.
Aid agencies have warned that the earthquake could exacerbate hunger and disease outbreaks in a country already wracked by food shortages, mass displacement and civil war.
'The earthquake itself is devastating, but what makes it even worse is that Mandalay, like the rest of Myanmar, is already in crisis,' said Mr Kaung Myat.
'Since the military coup in 2021, public services have collapsed, including healthcare.
'Hospitals are severely underfunded and understaffed and they even lack basic medical supplies.
'The military, the current regime, prioritises its own power and survival over the needs of the people. So there's no real aid coming from them.
'That means victims, especially those in public hospitals, who are really less fortunate, are left to save themselves right now.'
Mr Kaung Myat, who had been feeling helpless so far away from home, has set up a fundraiser to help buy medical supplies for local hospitals in the area.
His parents, who both work in the medical industry, have been organising supplies on the ground.
So far they have co-ordinated donations to Mandalay General Hospital (MGH) and 550 Bedded Children's Hospital.
They will be donating to additional hospitals including Mandalay Orthopaedic Hospital (MOH) and those in the Sagaing region, where conditions are believed to be even worse.
Mr Kaung Myat, who left Myanmar for the UK in 2022, has said it is unsafe for him to return to his country after being involved in student demonstrations against the military coup and due to the country's conscription law.
The military seized power from Aung San Suu Kyi's government in February 2021, triggering a civil war and a series of anti-coup protests.
'I went back home in 2023 after my first year, and at the time, the situation had not escalated as much. But now, it has gotten worse and worse, and it's not really safe for students to return to our country,' he said.
'Especially for those students who've been involved in the massive protest, the military coup and demonstration.'
To learn more about Aung Kaung Myat's fundraiser you can visit his fundraising page at https://www.gofundme.com/f/medical-aid-for-mandalay-earthquake-victims.
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