Following the plan, early in the morning, the search and rescue forces of the Vietnam People’s Army completed all preparations to retrieve the body of a victim from a collapsed building in the Bala Tidi area, Zabu Thiri district, Naypyidaw. Prior to this, the team had used service dogs, wall-penetrating radar, and imaging equipment to pinpoint the exact location of the victim. However, retrieving the body was an exceptionally challenging task, as three foreign rescue teams had previously attempted and failed to complete the mission.
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The Vietnamese team digging through rubble to locate victims of the earthquake in Naypyidaw |
When we arrived at building 2386 in Bala Tidi, the victim’s family, relatives, and acquaintances were waiting there. Meme Cho, the victim's daughter, explained that the person trapped in the collapsed building was U Maung Tin, 74 years old. The four-story building where U Maung Tin lived housed four families. When the earthquake struck, U Maung Tin, his wife and their young grandchild were at home, while their children were at work. The grandchild was also trapped inside, but was rescued by local forces and found to have lost one leg.
Observing the team's effort to retrieve the body from the collapsed building, Major General Pham Van Ty, Deputy Director of the Search and Rescue Department of the General Staff, and head of the Vietnamese contingent, always reminded everyone to proceed with caution. He then turned to me and shared that retrieving the victim’s body was very challenging, as the first floor of the building had completely collapsed, and the remaining floors were severely damaged. Using tools like hydraulic spreaders and concrete cutters, there was a risk of the building collapsing further, posing dangers to the rescue team.
The buildings in Zabu Thiri district are primarily three- or four-story structures divided into several apartments. Although Naypyidaw was not at the epicenter of the earthquake, the buildings in the capital were still too fragile to withstand the magnitude of the earthquake that struck on March 28. On the first day I arrived here, while surveying the scene with the Vietnam People's Army team, I saw entire three-story buildings completely collapsed, with the roofs piled on top of each other, and debris scattered everywhere. Retrieving the victims’ bodies require heavy machinery, such as bulldozers and excavators. However, given the current conditions in Naypyidaw, acquiring such equipment seemed nearly impossible.
Yet, the team did not give up. After more than four hours of continuous work, the engineering team managed to bring U Maung Tin’s body out of the rubble, and the medical team handed it over to the family for the funeral arrangements.
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The family of U Maung Tin expresses their gratitude to the Vietnam People's Army search and rescue forces. |
While accompanying the team of the Vietnam People’s Army to conduct the search and rescue in Myanmar, there were two moments that made deeply me moved and filled me with pride for my comrades. The first was when U Maung Tin's son said that before the Vietnam People's Army contingent arrived, he thought it was impossible to retrieve his father’s body. The second one was when Zar Min Myat, the officer responsible for coordinating the rescue efforts with the Vietnamese team, said that if he were to give a rating, he would give the Vietnamese search and rescue team a “5-star” rating for their solidarity, agility, and professionalism. Zar Min Myat said that he reports daily to his superiors about the progress of the Vietnamese team’s work, and he hoped the team would continue to support Naypyidaw and Myanmar in their search and rescue efforts.
By Vu Hung (from Naypyidaw, Myanmar)
Translated by Tran Hoai