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| A building under construction in Bangkok came crashing down |
At around midday in central Myanmar, there was a shocking 7.7 magnitude earthquake that was felt as far away as Bangkok. It was horrific to see the initial videos coming out of the Thai capital, such as a tall office building that was being constructed came crashing down, water pouring from the top floor of the InterContinental Bangkok from the rooftop swimming pool, and a construction crane collapse and crash to the ground.
As I was just there over two weeks ago I immediately contacted people I knew in Bangkok. One told me that she and her colleagues had evacuated from their office building and were waiting outside. She said they were in complete shock.
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| Water pouring from rooftop pool during the quake |
He had just returned from Seoul where he attended the Asia's 50 Best Restaurants awards, where Le Du was ranked no. 20 and Nusara at no. 6.
My friend and I were thinking we were so lucky we were not in Bangkok during the earthquake -- imagine what it would have been like being on the top floor of the Empire Centre where Le Du Kaan, a bar/restaurant and Chinese restaurant K by Vicky Cheng are located.
Not to mention being on the 77th floor of Mahanakhorn which was reportedly swaying during the earthquake!
However there are some silver linings... an American chef I know who has three restaurants in Bangkok told me that because people cannot return to their hotels or condos in tall buildings, his dining establishments are packed tonight. Wonder if they will have to stay the night in his restaurants too!
So far around 117 people are missing, five confirmed dead in Bangkok, while the military government in Myanmar says 144 people have died, and 732 injured.
Hope survivors will be found, and that aftershocks won't be too severe...
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