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NIGHTMARE FUEL: CCTV Footage Captures Moment 7.7 Magnitude Quake Rocks Skyscraper Rooftop Pool

Earthquakes are scary to begin with — from ground level.

But try imagining that you’re dozens of stories up on the top of a skyscraper, in a rooftop pool, when a massive quake strikes.

Talk about nightmare fuel!

That was the scenario that unfolded for multiple pool goers atop skyscrapers in the Thai capital of Bangkok last Friday.

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The 7.7 Magnitude quake hit neighboring Myanmar, but Bangkok’s high-rise capital city also took an enormous hit.

Buildings are still coming down today nearly 6 days later as a result of the devastating initial quake, and the aftershocks.

From what I can tell, multiple skyscrapers with rooftop pools were captured from different angles during the shaking.

According to reports, people actually fell from the pool atop the skyscraper featured in this post (full screen video below post for easier viewing):

But this next video is the one that truly feeds my nightmare fuel, because it brings you up close and personal to those experiencing the earthquake in real time.

I can barely wrap my mind around the sheer terror of experiencing an earthquake that high up, in a pool!

I experienced a 5.2 quake in the Balkans on one occasion that struck neighboring Greece, and I was on a 2nd story balcony — and THAT was terrifying!

But just imagine experiencing THIS! (Full screen video below):

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Unfortunately, an earthquake of this magnitude is sure to kill many thousands — and you don’t have to be swimming in a rooftop pool to be in danger.

I spent several weeks on the ground in Port-au-Prince in the immediate aftermath of Haiti’s cataclysmic earthquake in 2010.

I can tell you from experience that even tall buildings in these places aren’t built with American specs in mind.

The loss of life is likely far more widespread, and the true death toll far higher, than will ever be reported.

There are so many videos of buildings collapsing as a result of this quake that it seems improbable that a terribly high death toll isn’t coming.

Here’s yet another collapse that reportedly took out more than 90 people — a building under construction full of workers at the time it collapsed:

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Residents of the area have described the quakes as the worst they’ve ever experienced.

When the tremors first hit in the early afternoon last Friday, most people didn’t know what was happening until it was too late.

The initial 7.7 quake was quickly followed by a 6.4 magnitude aftershock, according to a report on the Malaysian news site, Malaymail:

Malaysian residents in the Thai capital, especially those in high-rise buildings, were jolted by a powerful earthquake in Myanmar last Friday, leaving many in shock and seeking safety.

The powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar’s Sagaing Region at around 1 pm local time, followed by a second earthquake measuring 6.4 in magnitude, triggering tremors in Thailand.

Malaysian Dr Hwee Khim Boo, 63, said this was the first time she had encountered tremors after living in Bangkok for more than 30 years.

Hwee said when the tremors hit Bangkok last Friday, she was at work in her office in Sam Phran District and did not immediately realise what was happening.

Chairman of Malaysians and Indians in Bangkok (MIB) Dr Silva Kumar, who resides at Shiva Tower in the Sukhumvit district, said last Friday’s tremor was the worst he had experienced compared to the one that struck Bangkok three years ago.

“In my 28 years in Bangkok, this was the worst. Three years ago, we felt a mild tremor, but it was nothing significant. This time, the building we live in, which has a heavy and strongly built structure, swayed from left to right for about a minute.”

One journalist posted the following mashup of videos from the aftermath of the quake.

The first few seconds include a view of yet another skyscraper with its rooftop pool splashing over the edges of the building:

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Again, I can tell you from experience that it’s a strange thing watching an entire large city try to grapple with instant devastation of this magnitude.

Check out this ABC report from the ground in Bangkok, revealing more of the images coming out of the quake zone:

The continued aftershocks are continuing to make rescue and cleanup efforts even more perilous, though there are rescues ongoing.

There was news today and yesterday of rescues, including a 62 year old woman pulled from the rubble.

But buildings are continuing to collapse, according to a CNN report:

Buildings in Myanmar are continuing to collapse five days after a powerful earthquake struck the country, creating perilous conditions for rescuers as they attempt to extricate survivors from the rubble.

More than 2,700 people were killed in the 7.7-magnitude quake, with thousands more injured, according to Myanmar’s military junta. Hundreds more remain missing, meaning the death toll is almost certain to rise.

The Myanmar Fire Services Department on Wednesday shared video of a heartwarming moment in the military’s purpose-built capital Naypyidaw, where workers pulled a man from the rubble more than 100 hours after the quake, a miraculous rescue that offered a rare moment of hope.

The man appeared tired and disheveled as he was pulled out of an air pocket between broken slabs of concrete, to a round of applause.

A day earlier, a 62-year-old woman was similarly pulled from broken slabs of concrete in Naypyidaw.

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Elsewhere, a team of Chinese rescuers on Monday pulled four people – including a five-year-old child and a pregnant woman – from the rubble.

Structurally vulnerable buildings in the country are still collapsing as tremors continue, according to human rights organizations, highlighting the dangers of the rescue mission.

Two hotels collapsed Monday night near the epicenter in Mandalay, the country’s second most populous city, after people went back to the structures days after the quake.

“With these additional tremors, fatalities are still occurring,” said Michael Dunford, Myanmar director at the United Nations World Food Programme.

“Many people are still sleeping out in the open on the streets or in the parks because they are too scared to go back into their homes. And of course, this is hampering our efforts to reach them and to provide the type of support that they need.”

Here’s yet ANOTHER view of a rooftop pool in Thailand, presumably captured by a pool goer who jumped out and started filming when the shaking started:

With tremors ongoing, there is sure to be more devastation to the region already struggling under the aftermath of Friday’s quakes.

But I can promise you — after witnessing those rooftop pool images — if I ever visit southeast Asia…

There will be no rooftop swim sessions for this guy!

I don’t have anything against a classic inground pool, especially in an earthquake prone region!


 

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