Emergency services crew survey the site of a collapsed building in Bangkok on March 28, 2025, following an earthquake.

A powerful earthquake struck Southeast Asia on Friday, causing widespread destruction across Myanmar and collapsing a skyscraper in Bangkok, Thailand, killing at least three people and burying dozens.

The 7.7 magnitude earthquake – centered in Myanmar, about 30 miles east of the city of Monywa – struck around lunchtime and was followed by several tremors, including a 6.4 magnitude aftershock.

In Bangkok, a high-rise building under construction collapsed, killing at least three people and triggering a search for over 80 workers believed to be trapped under the rubble, the defense minister told reporters. Video showed the skyscraper crash to the ground as crowds nearby ran from billowing plumes of smoke.

The Thailand National Institute for Emergency Medicine said 320 workers were at the site when the building collapsed.

An earthquake survivor is carried as she waits to receive medical attention at a hospital in Naypyidaw on March 28, 2025, after an earthquake in central Myanmar.

The earthquake brought down buildings across Myanmar, including a section of a mosque in the town of Tuangoo, killing at least three people, Reuters reported.

Local media reported at least two people died and about 20 were injured in the collapse of a hotel in the town of Aung Ban. Two bridges were also destroyed.

Myanmar’s military-run government declared a state of emergency in six regions. The military junta seized power in a coup in 2021, leading to a brutal civil war and a humanitarian crisis.

“The state will make inquiries on the situation quickly and conduct rescue operations along with providing humanitarian aid,” the junta said on the Telegram messaging app.

Contributing: Reuters

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Powerful earthquake rocks Myanmar, Thailand; many feared dead