A U.S. team has yet to arrive in Myanmar after last week’s 7.7-magnitude earthquake, while China has already rescued six people and committed $14 million in humanitarian aid.

People were pulled alive out of rubble in Myanmar and signs of life were detected in the ruins of a skyscraper in Bangkok on Monday as efforts intensified to find survivors three days after a massive earthquake that killed around 2,

At least three hospitals in the country are out of service, according to the World Health Organisation, three days after a powerful earthquake hit the country.

The devastating quake whose death toll has surpassed 1,600 coincided with a parade to celebrate the military junta – a coincidence too far for many in this superstitious nation, who now believe it to be an unmistakable sign that the government is doomed,

In a censored nation that runs on rumor and omens, people in Myanmar wonder whether the latest disaster might be a portent of regime change.

Ravaged by four years of civil war, Myanmar has been further hit by the destruction brought by the massive earthquake, which has killed more than 1,600 people and destroyed thousands of homes.

In Myanmar, the official death toll continues to climb three days after a devastating earthquake, but still reflects only a fraction of the number of deaths estimated by the United States Geological Survey.

The US has not been perfect in its application of soft power over the years, but diplomacy and aid are preferable to war and weapons.

Death's smell clung heavy in the burning sun as grasping hands dug through piles of wreckage, hoping against hope for some sign of life beneath the rubble of Myanmar's second-largest city, reported AP.