Catholics race against time and obstacles to help earthquake victims in Myanmar

More than 60 men died after a mosque collapsed in Sagaing Township aftera 7.7-magmitude earthquake struck Myanmar on March 28, 2025. / Credit: Courtesy of the Action Against Hunger team in Sagaing

ACI Prensa Staff, Apr 2, 2025 / 18:36 pm (CNA).

Rescue teams have been working against the clock in Myanmar searching for survivors under the rubble after last Friday’s 7.7-magnitude earthquake. But the battle hasn’t just been against time or the high temperatures of over 100 degrees.

“The army isn’t allowing relief teams to operate freely,” a priest from the Diocese of Loikaw in eastern Myanmar told ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner.

“The Church is also trying to help, but we encounter countless obstacles. We can’t freely access the affected areas because there are military checkpoints everywhere. Supplies are confiscated, volunteers are prevented from entering, and in some areas the army doesn’t even allow victims to receive the assistance they need,” said the priest, who requested anonymity.

He said he fears reprisals from the military regime that seized power in a coup in February 2021 and overthrew the democratically-elected government of the National League for Democracy party.

So far, the official death toll from the March 28 earthquake stands at 2,886, while the number of injured is approaching 4,639, according to the latest figures shared by the military junta. This number is expected to continue to rise.

The devastation is particularly widespread in Mandalay, the country’s second-largest city, just 11 miles from the earthquake’s epicenter, as well as in the capital, Nay Pyi Taw, which is more than 150 miles away, and in the Sagaing region in the northwest of the country.

*Catholic Church ‘one of the first to respond’*

“Many people are still trapped under the rubble, but time passes and the chances of finding survivors are diminishing. Furthermore, those who managed to escape alive are in deplorable conditions: without food, without drinking water, and without shelter. There is a great need for medical assistance, but there is also no access to adequate hospitals,” the priest related.

“People are desperate. This morning I heard someone say: ‘If you can’t give us anything else, at least give us clean water.’ That shows the gravity of the situation,” he added.

From the very beginning, the Catholic Church has tried to mobilize to assist the victims. Through Caritas Myanmar, teams have been coordinated to distribute drinking water, food, and medicine.

“The Church has been one of the first to respond to the emergency, but we encounter barriers in every attempt to help. There are military checkpoints on the roads, we are required to obtain permission to transport supplies, and in many cases, the soldiers simply confiscate the aid or block its passage,” the priest explained.

The nation, one of the poorest in Asia, has been mired in a civil war for four years, triggered by the 2021 coup by the current military junta in power. The conflict has displaced 3.5 million people, according to the U.N., and has exacerbated poverty and food insecurity.

Despite the humanitarian crisis unleashed after the powerful earthquake, the spiral of violence has not abated.

“The conflict makes it almost impossible to move aid from one region to another. The military junta controls access to main roads, there are checkpoints everywhere, and anyone trying to bring supplies risks arrest or having everything confiscated,” the priest recounted.

The archbishop of Rangoon and president of the Myanmar Bishops’ Conference, Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, has called for a ceasefire in his country to facilitate rescue efforts, but his appeal has been unsuccessful.

Sagaing Township is one of the hardest hit. Credit: Courtesy of Action Against Hunger

“We have received reports of fighting in some areas, but communications are damaged, making it difficult to assess the full impact,” said Lisette Suárez, head of the Mental Health and Protection Department of Action Against Hunger in Myanmar, one of the organizations responsible for collecting foreign humanitarian aid and distributing it throughout the country.

“It’s essential to ensure safe and unrestricted access to all affected communities, regardless whose control they’re under,” she emphasized.

The distribution of humanitarian aid has also been hampered because many roads and main thoroughfares “have been completely destroyed” by the earthquake.

“Furthermore, some local airports are still working to restore operations, limiting the air transport of humanitarian aid,” Suárez added.

*Without food, water, or electricity*

Added to this infrastructure paralysis are administrative problems, as many government offices have also suffered damage and some of their staff are directly affected by the tragedy, Suárez noted.

“The country was already experiencing a humanitarian crisis before the disaster, with a conflict limiting mobility and safe access to many areas,” she pointed out.

The electricity and running water supply remains disrupted, hampering access to health services and increasing the risk of disease outbreaks spreading through water and food. Furthermore, hospitals are operating at half capacity.

“They are treating patients on the streets, with limited resources and without electricity. The few remaining care centers are overwhelmed,” said the worker for Action Against Hunger, an organization that has been operating in the country for 30 years.

Supply problems also affect food. “Markets have collapsed, and there is no access to basic foodstuffs. Thousands of families have lost their livelihoods.”

The earthquake has not only worsened the conditions of those internally displaced by the conflict. “It has affected everyone, without distinction. Displaced communities, those who lived in conflict zones, and those who did not,” explained Suárez, who also emphasized the incalculable psychological impact on a population already traumatized by the war.

“The earthquake has left a profound mark on the mental health of the population. Not only have the communities suffered human and material losses, but also the response teams are working in extremely difficult conditions,” she explained.

Despite the difficulties, international aid has begun to arrive. “Many organizations are using supplies that had been reserved for the monsoon season [June-October], but they probably won’t be enough,” Suárez pointed out.

In any case, despite the devastation, the small Catholic community in Myanmar continues to show great resilience. “Our faith remains strong. Despite the difficulties, we remain united, praying, and helping one another. We cannot lose hope that better days will come,” the priest from the Diocese of Loikaw said.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.