Myanmar authorities have arrested a TikTok astrologer for spreading panic by predicting another strong earthquake in the aftermath of last month’s tremor, state media said Thursday.
John Moe The, who has a TikTok following of more than 300,000, forecast on April 9 that a “very strong” quake would hit “every city in Myanmar” in 12 days’ time.
“People should not stay in tall buildings during the day,” said the caption on his video viewed 3.3 million times.
“Take important things with you and run away from buildings during the shaking.”
Last month’s earthquake in Myanmar’s central belt killed more than 3,700 and has left 60,000 living in tent encampments, according to the UN, many too fearful to return home as aftershocks continue.
The 21-year-old John Moe The was arrested in a morning raid on his home in central Monywa city on Tuesday, according to a statement by Myanmar’s military government published in state media on Thursday.
“We got a tip-off about fake news being spread through a TikTok account that a severe earthquake will hit,” said the statement.
“Action will be taken effectively against him according to the law. Likewise, we will also take action effectively against those who write or spread or share fake news.”
Yangon resident Nan Nan told AFP she had not believed the social media post, but many neighbors had.
“Most of my neighbors dared not to stay in their apartments and lived out on the street on that day,” the 35-year-old said. “My friend even hired a small house outside Yangon in preparation.”
John Moe The’s TikTok account is titled “John (Palmistry)” and issues regular text predictions against the backdrop of a swirling cosmos.
His forecasts included other weather disasters, the release of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi who was deposed in the country’s 2021 coup, and American airstrikes on Myanmar’s soil.
Earthquake early warning systems do exist — sensing the jolt and beaming out a signal faster than the speed of the shockwave.
However, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) says predicting tremors ahead of time is scientifically impossible.
“Neither the USGS nor any other scientists have ever predicted a major earthquake,” says a statement on their website.
“We do not know how, and we do not expect to know how any time in the foreseeable future.”
Getting help to those in need in Myanmar has proved difficult in a country where key infrastructure was badly damaged and where a civil war had already been raging before the 7.7 magnitude quake.
In neighboring Thailand, the quake was felt strongly in capital Bangkok, but only one large building completely collapsed. Thai authorities have ordered an investigation into that isolated collapse to determine whether it could have been due to inadequate building materials, design flaws or a failure in the inspections process.
