Over 1,000 people have been confirmed dead in Myanmar after a powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck the centre of the country on Friday, sending tremors as far as China and Thailand and reducing buildings in the region to rubble.

A powerful, deadly earthquake struck at the heart of civil war-ravaged Myanmar on Friday, piling fresh misery on an impoverished nation that was cut off from much of the world even before this natural disaster struck.

Thailand, Myanmar, Bangkok and several other regions in Southeast Asia were rocked by the massive earthquake on Friday, burying dozens under piles of debris from collapsed buildings. Efforts to evacuate the missing is underway across these areas.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) said that the epicentre of the 7.7-magnitude earthquake was 16 kilometres north-northwest of the town of Sagaing in Myanmar

The quake shook a swath of Southeast Asia. Myanmar’s military government said 144 people were killed in just three cities. The U.S. Geological Survey estimated that the death toll was likely to surpass 1,

Emergency rescue teams on Sunday began trickling into the area of Myanmar hardest hit by a massive earthquake that killed more than 1,600 people

Rescue operations are underway in the major stricken cities of Mandalay, the country’s No. 2 city, and Naypyitaw, the capital.

The toll from Myanmar's earthquake continued to rise on Sunday, as foreign rescue teams and aid rushed into the impoverished country, where hospitals were overwhelmed and some communities scrambled to mount rescue efforts with limited resources.