Bangkok, March 29: Myanmar's ruling military said Saturday on state television that the confirmed death toll from a devastating earthquake rose to more than 1,600. The new total of 1,644 is a sharp rise over the 1,002 total announced just hours earlier, underlining the difficulty of confirming casualties over a widespread region and the likelihood that the numbers will continue to grow from Friday's quake. The number of injured increased to 3,408, while the missing figure rose to 139. Myanmar Earthquake: Death Toll From Powerful 7.7 Magnitude Quake Jumps to More Than 1,000 As More Bodies Recovered From the Rubble of Collapsed Buildings.

Rescue efforts are underway especially in the major stricken cities of Mandalay and Naypyitaw, the capital. But even though teams and equipment have been flown in from other nations, they are hindered by the airports in those cities being damaged and apparently unfit to land planes.

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