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More details about the Myanmar earthquake are emerging

Quicksand-like physics exacerbated the earthquake’s destruction

A photo of a building in Mandalay, a city in Myanmar, that toppled over during a magnitude 7.7 earthquake March 28.

The powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake that rocked Myanmar and Thailand on March 28 toppled buildings, such as this one in Mandalay.

STR/AFP via Getty Images

By Carolyn Gramling

As rescue and recovery efforts continue to ramp-up in earthquake-ravaged Myanmar, new details about how the geologic setting amplified the disaster are beginning to emerge.

The March 28 magnitude 7.7 earthquake that rocked through Southeast Asia collapsed buildings, dams and bridges, and killed at least 2,700 people.