Photos: Landslides, flash floods damage 1,000 year old pagoda in Myanmar
Flooding in southern Myanmar has caused a landslide at a famed Buddhist Kyeik Than Lan pagoda in the Mawlamyine district, submerged homes and displaced hundreds of people as monsoon rains batter the country. Several parts of Myanmar's southern Mon state, home to its main trading centre and southern sea port are facing flash floods due to heavy rains since the weekend with no relief in sight. Rescue workers could be seen working together with novice Buddhist monks in attempting to salvage prized Buddha statues and artifacts after the recent damage.
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Workers save a Buddha statue after a landslide damaged the hilltop Kyeik Than Lan pagoda in Mawlamyine, Mon state following heavy rains. Flooding in southern Myanmar caused a landslide at the over 1,100-year-old pagoda, submerged homes and displaced residents, according to state media, as the monsoon season picks up strength. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)
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Residents use an improvised raft to move around in the flooded township of Mawlamyine. Several parts of Myanmar’s southern Mon state are facing flash floods due to heavy rains since the weekend with no relief in sight, according to a report in the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar on Monday. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)
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Rains triggered a landslide that damaged the hilltop Kyeik Than Lan pagoda, whose golden stupa towers over state capital Mawlamyine. Workers were seen helping to relocate Buddha statues and novice monks helped clean up debris at the religious site after a wedge of hillside slipped away. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)
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Bo Win, a resident helping with the flood response, told AFP that around 1,000 people were sheltering in several sites around Mawlamyine. “This is the worst flood in the state that I have ever seen,” said Nyan Soe, another local resident. (Ye Aung Thu / AFP)
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