September 21, 2003 Earthquake: Bangkok, Taungdwingyi, Thailand, Myanmar

Three temples, a bridge and other structures damaged at Taungdwingyi. Felt in much of central Myanmar. Minor cracks in buildings at Bangkok; felt in Chiang Mai and Mae Hong Son, Thailand. (reference #1053)

On 22 September 2003, an earthquake with moment magnitude of 6.8 occurred in Central Myanmar, causing severe damage to rural houses and religious buildings. The earthquake had happened in the midnight of 21 September 2003 near Taungdwingyi City, about 360 kilometers away from Yangon, the former capital of Myanmar. The location of the epicenter was at the western boundary of the Bago Yoma anticlinorium and the alluvial plain composing of the water-saturated silts and sandy loam. Scientists believe that the earthquake, showing a transpressional nature in its USGS fault plane solution, occurred after buried southern extension of Gwegyo thrust, which is strikingly exposed near Mt. Popa Volcano north of the present location [Soe Thura Tun et al., 2003]. The effect of that earthquake rendered the cracking down of the non-engineered brick structures, mostly were rural houses, and extensive liquefaction failure of building foundations (180 rural houses were severely damaged) [Myanmar Earthquake Committee, 2003]. Fortunately it occurred in the midnight, so most of the community centers and school buildings were empty, and that reduced causality in the affected area (7 death and 43 injured), which can be compared with the Bam City earthquake of Iran of the same magnitude scale in the same year. Figure 4 shows some records of damages. (reference #13976)