7.7 magnitude earthquake rocks Bangkok, prompting evacuations from swaying buildings

Bangkok: A strong 7.7 magnitude earthquake rocked the Thai capital of Bangkok on Friday, causing buildings to sway.

The US Geological Survey and Germany's GFZ centre for geosciences said the midday temblor was a shallow 10 kilometres (6.2 miles), with an epicentre in neighbouring Myanmar, according to preliminary reports.

The greater Bangkok area is home to more than 17 million people, many of whom live in high-rise apartments.

Alarms went off in buildings as the earthquake hit around 1:30 pm, and startled residents were evacuated down staircases of high-rise condominiums and hotels in densely populated central Bangkok.

They remained in the streets, seeking shade from the midday sun in the minutes after the quake.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.

The quake was forceful enough to send water sloshing out of pools, some high up in high-rises, as the tremor shook.

A dramatic video circulated on social media showed the multi-story building with a crane on top collapsing into a cloud of dust, while onlookers screamed and ran.

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Police told The Associated Press they were responding to the scene near Bangkok’s popular Chatuchak Market, and had no immediate information on how many workers were on the site at the time of the collapse.

In another video from Bangkok, water was seen cascading from a high-rise building's pool due to the shaking.

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The epicentre of the earthquake was in central Myanmar, about 50 kilometres (30 miles) east of the city of Monywa.

There were no immediate reports of the effect of the earthquake in Myanmar, which is in the middle of a civil war. (AP)