Thailand's Emergency Services Ministry said two people were found dead and the number of others was unknown still under the ruins of a building that collapsed after a major earthquake, which hit the capital.
Rescue Songwut Wangpon told reporters that seven more people were found at the site near the popular Chatuchak market in Bangkok.
The 7.7-magnitude earthquake occurred after the 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit at noon Friday, and the multi-layer structure collapsed, putting a crane on the ground and spreading a lot of dust into the air.
Rescuers took a wounded person from the site of the collapsed high-rise building (Sakchai Lalit/AP) in Bangkok.
A dramatic video released on social media showed the building collapse under construction and onlookers ran away screaming.
Police told the Associated Press that they were responding to the scene and there was no immediate information on how many workers were there when the collapsed.
Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra convened an emergency meeting to assess the impact of a magnitude 7.7 earthquake.
Workers and others in high-rise shopping malls seek asylum at Adam Schreck/AP in Bangkok
“The entire building suddenly started to move, causing screams and panic immediately,” said Fraser Morton, a tourist from Scotland.
“I just started walking calmly, but then the buildings started to really move, yes, a lot of screaming, panic, people walked along the escalator the wrong way, slamming and crashing inside the mall.”
Like thousands of people in central Bangkok, Mr Morton seeks shelter at Benjasiri Park, away from tall buildings.
“I walked outside and looked up at the building, the whole building was moving, dust and debris, and it was very intense,” he said. “A lot of chaos.”
According to preliminary reports, the U.S. Geological Survey and the German GFZ Center for Earth Sciences said the incident was shallow at 6.2 miles, and the center of neighboring Myanmar was shallow.
State media said Myanmar declared an emergency in its capital and the second largest city after the earthquake.
The second earthquake, with an amplitude of 6.4, shocked the area after 12 minutes.
The Greater Bangkok area is home to more than 17 million people, many of whom live in high-rise apartments.
People gathered from buildings on Bangkok streets (Chutima Lalit/AP)
The earthquake hit around local time and alarms for buildings were issued, as shocked residents were evacuated from dense high-rise buildings and hotel stairs in central Bangkok.
They stayed on the street, seeking shadows from the noon sun within minutes after the earthquake.
The earthquake is powerful enough to shake with the tremor, and some elevated pools emit water.
The center of the earthquake is in central Myanmar, 30 miles east of Moniva City.
Pagodas (Aung Shine oo/ap) from Naypyitaw, Myanmar
Myanmar is in a civil war.
In the capital Naypyitaw, the earthquake damaged religious shrines, pouring parts onto the ground and some houses.
According to videos and photos posted on Facebook, in Mandalay, the country's second largest city, close to the epicenter, the earthquake damaged part of the former palace and buildings.
A destroyed monastery in Naypyitaw, Myanmar (Aung Shine oo/ap)
Although the area is prone to earthquakes, it is sparsely populated and most of the houses are low-rise buildings.
In the Sagua area southwest of Mandalay, a 90-year-old bridge collapsed, and the roads connecting Mandalay to Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, were also damaged.
When the earthquake struck, Yangon residents rushed out of their homes. No immediate reports of injury or death.
Thailand's disaster prevention department said earthquakes were felt in almost all parts of the country.
