Myanmar quake struck mosques as minority Muslims gathered for Ramadan prayers

By Shoon Naing and Wa Lone

(Reuters) - When Friday's powerful earthquake struck central Myanmar, Htet Min Oo was performing ritual ablutions before Ramadan prayers at a mosque next to his house in Mandalay. 

His home collapsed along with part of the mosque, trapping half his body with the rubble of a wall that buried two of his aunts. Residents raced to pull the aunts out, he said, but only one survived. 

Htet Min Oo, 25, said two uncles and his grandmother were also trapped under piles of concrete. With no heavy equipment available, he tried desperately to clear the rubble with his hands but could not shift it. 

"I don't know if they are still alive under the debris. After so long, I don't think there's any hope," he said on Friday. 

"There's too much rubble and no rescue teams have come for us," he added, his voice shaking as he broke into tears.

Hundreds of Muslims are feared among the dead in Myanmar after the shallow quake struck as worshippers gathered at mosques for Friday prayers in the holy month. 

More than 50 mosques sustained damage, according to the shadow National Unity Government.

'I HAD TO LEAVE HIM BEHIND'

A 39-year-old resident of the Mandalay region described harrowing scenes as he tried to save a man trapped under the debris of a collapsed mosque in Sule Kone village, but had to flee because of strong aftershocks.

"I had to leave him behind ... I went in a second time to try to save him," he said, declining to be identified.

"I retrieved four people with my own hands. But unfortunately, three were already dead and one died in my arms." 

He said 10 people had been killed there, and that they were among 23 who died at three mosques that were destroyed in the village. Government restrictions had prevented them being upgraded, he said. 

Muslims are a minority in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar and have been marginalised by successive governments, while ultranationalist groups and extremist monks have in recent years incited violence.

Myanmar authorities have for decades made it difficult for Muslims to obtain permission to repair or build new mosques, according to 2017 report by the U.S. State Department, which said historic mosques have deteriorated because routine maintenance was denied. 

Buddhist buildings were also badly hit by the quake, with 670 monasteries and 290 pagodas damaged, according to the military government. It did not mention any mosques in its damage report.

Reuters could not reach the mosques or verify the accounts of the collapses.   

One man, Julian Kyle, appealed on social media for heavy equipment to lift concrete pillars after the quake destroyed another Mandalay mosque. 

"Underneath the rubble, my family members and others were crushed and lost their lives," he posted. "We desperately want to recover their bodies."

A resident from the town of Taungnoo about 370 km (230 miles) away said he was praying when one side of the Kandaw mosque caved in on two rows of men seated before him. 

"I saw so many people carried out from the mosque, some of them died right before my eyes," he said. "It was truly heartbreaking."

(Reporting by Shoon Naing and Wa Lone, Writing by Martin Petty, Editing by Timothy Heritage)