Tears, prayers in search for monks trapped by Myanmar quake

Covered in dust and resembling a Buddhist statue, the face of a dead monk emerges from the rubble of a religious examination hall in Mandalay flattened by Myanmar’s devastating earthquake.

A rescue worker gently brushes some of the grey powder off the face before covering it respectfully with a fan. Under another concrete slab, flies crawl over a shaven head matted with blood.

The rotting odour of death permeated the air above the remains of the U Hla Thein monastery on Sunday, 48 hours after the shallow 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck, destroying buildings across the central Myanmar city.

More than 180 monks were taking the third session of a six-day exam for a senior level of monkhood when the tremors hit around 12:50 pm (0620 GMT) on Friday.