Aftershocks from a magnitude-7.7 earthquake in Myanmar on Friday may continue, but its impact on Ho Chi Minh City and Vietnam as a whole is expected to be minimal due to the distance, Nguyen Xuan Anh, director of the Institute of Geophysics, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

The institute is monitoring the earthquake closely to provide timely warnings, Anh added.

He also reported that local authorities have issued earthquake response guidelines for citizens to stay informed, even though such natural disasters are rare in Vietnam.

The earthquake, which happened at 1:20 pm (Vietnam time) in Myanmar, had significant effects on neighboring regions, including Vietnam. 

Several high-rise buildings in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Binh Duong Province in southern Vietnam experienced strong tremors, making residents feel dizzy and anxious.

The U.S. Geological Survey recorded the earthquake at 7.7 on the Richter scale. Meanwhile, Germany’s GFZ Helmholtz Center for Geosciences reported a magnitude of 6.9 in Myanmar and 7.3 in Bangkok, Thailand.

The New York Times quoted a doctor at Mandalay General Hospital in Myanmar as saying that by 4:30 pm, the earthquake had caused at least 20 deaths and injured 200 people in Mandalay.

Myanmar's ruling military declared a state of emergency in multiple regions after the earthquake.

Three people have died in Bangkok from the impact of the quake, Reuters reported.

Earthquakes with magnitudes between 7.0 and 7.8 are classified as major earthquakes.

They can cause widespread destruction, severely damaging buildings across large areas. Some structures may partially or completely collapse.

On average, 10 to 20 major earthquakes occur worldwide each year.

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