Biel Jose Catipon

The Philippine government, through the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) expressed its willingness to provide humanitarian assistance to Myanmar and Thailand as a deadly quake struck the countries on Friday, March 28.

Photo Courtesy of Politico.

The earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 resulted in 1,700 deaths, 3400 injuries, and 300 missing persons in Myanmar and about 17 fatalities in Thailand as of March 30.

Its epicenter was located approximately 17.2 kilometers from the city of Mandalay in Myanmar and was also felt in Thailand.

Minutes later, a 6.4-magnitude aftershock followed.

"Hindi pa natin alam ang extent ng damage. So far, walang Pilipinong nasawi. Kung may mga gustong umuwi dahil rito, tulungan natin," said DFA Undersecretary Eduardo De Vega in an interview with Dobol B TV on March 29.

The Philippine Embassy in Myanmar has been assessing the situation to ensure the safety and well-being of Filipinos by conducting welfare checks in the affected areas.


“Those who require relocation or repatriation will also be assessed and assisted,” the Embassy announced in their Advisory.

According to  the Philippines’ Office of Civil Defense, the government is set to deploy 114 personnel to Myanmar, tentatively on April 1 for a two-week mission.

This number consists of 31 members from the Philippine Emergency Medical Assistance Team (PEMAT), from the Department of Health (DOH).

80 personnel will come from one light Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team each from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), and Apex Mining Corporation/First Gen-Energy Development Corporation (EDC) SRR Teams.

Three members of the ASEAN Emergency Response and Assessment Team (ASEAN-ERAT) in addition have been requested by the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance (AHA) to travel to Myanmar by March 30.

As of writing, 121 out of 128 registered Filipinos in the area have been confirmed safe.

However, four remain unaccounted for, and the status of three others is still being verified.

The embassy reminded everyone to remain vigilant for possible aftershocks and to stay in contact with other Filipinos in the community to ensure their safety.

De Vega encouraged Filipinos in need to reach out to the Philippine Embassy in Myanmar at hotline +95 998 521 0991 or the Philippine Embassy in Thailand at hotline +66 81 989 7116.