Aftershocks and lack of resources hinder recovery work 3 weeks after Myanmar's deadly earthquake

BANGKOK — Basic services have yet to be restored to the areas of Myanmar worst hit by a huge earthquake three weeks ago, and emergency workers recovering bodies and clearing debris are contending with regular aftershocks and lack of resources, humanitarian services say.

A situation report issued late Friday by the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, or OCHA, said frequent strong aftershocks continue to shake central Myanmar almost daily, increasing fear and uncertainty among affected residents, disrupting response effort s and exacerbating the pressure on already limited resources and services.

''Three weeks after catastrophic twin earthquakes hit Myanmar on 28 March, the worst-affected communities are still without safe shelter, clean water and sanitation, stable electricity, health care and essential services,'' the report said.

The epicenter of the 7.7 magnitude quake was near Mandalay, Myanmar's second-largest city, but it hit a wide swath of the country, causing significant damage to six regions and states including the capital, Naypyitaw.

It also worsened an already dire humanitarian crisis triggered by the country's civil war that had internally displaced more than 3 million people and left nearly 20 million in need, according to the United Nations.

A report in the state-run Myanma Alinn newspaper published on Saturday said the quake's death toll had reached 3,726, with 5,105 people injured and 129 still missing. It said 1,975 international rescuers and medical workers from 25 countries had collaborated with local rescuers in saving 653 people and recovering 753 bodies from under rubble.

Myanma Alinn said 65,096 houses and buildings, 2,514 schools, 4,317 Buddhist monasterial living quarters, 6,027 pagodas and temples, 350 hospitals and clinics, 170 bridges, 586 dams and 203 sections of the country's main highway were damaged by the earthquake.

Myanmar Fire Services Department, an official emergency services agency operating in many areas of the country, said in statements posted Friday on its Facebook page that rescue workers were carrying out relief, search and cleaning debris from the big buildings, and had returned valuable jewelry, cash, and documents found among the rubble to their owners.

It also said that rescuers recovered two bodies from collapsed buildings in Mandalay.

An official from Myanmar Rescue Federation (Mandalay), which has been operating along with the firefighters, told The Associated Press on Friday that the priority three weeks on from the earthquake was to clear bodies and debris from under bigger buildings, while also providing assistance to the survivors affected by the earthquake.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he fears arrest for speaking without authorization, said the number of bodies recovered daily has decreased to only one or two.

Another emergency services worker in Mandalay, similarly speaking on condition of anonymity, said the number of rescue teams operating in Mandalay has been steadily decreasing as most of the international rescue teams had returned to their countries after their work to find survivors was considered completed. He said local rescue workers were mainly participating in clearing debris and providing assistance.

The United Nations Development Program earlier this month estimated that at least 2.5 million tons, or roughly 125,000 truckloads, of debris from the quake needs to be removed. It based its estimate on remote sensing analysis of images obtained by satellites.

UN-Habitat, the U.N. agency for human settlements, said in a statement on Friday that its staff and the Myanmar Engineering Society were collaborating in assessing widespread building damage in earthquake-affected regions.

In Naypyitaw, almost all rescuers have ceased their relief efforts, while government buildings that were damaged by the earthquake have not yet been repaired and remain in their post-earthquake condition, said a resident who asked not to be named for security reasons. In residential areas, people have almost completed clearing the debris on their own.

Saturday's report in Myanma Alinn said Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, head of the military government, told his Cabinet members during a meeting on Friday that the urban layout of Naypyitaw will be redesigned.

Naypyitaw became Myanmar's capital in 2006 after being built at great expense almost from scratch next to what had once been a logging center inhabited by largely by farmers. It is notable for its grandiose government buildings and under-utilized multi-lane roads.