John Moe The, a TikTok personality, has been detained by authorities in Myanmar after his prediction of another significant earthquake led to public fear.
On March 28, Myanmar experienced a catastrophic earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7. According to the BBC, this natural disaster resulted in the death of over 3,000 individuals in the region.
In Thailand, the Department of Disaster Prevention noted that the tremors from the Myanmar quake were perceptible across nearly all parts of the country.
The US Geological Survey, along with Germany’s GFZ Centre for Geosciences, detailed that the earthquake’s epicenter was located 6.2 miles beneath the earth’s surface. Following the initial quake, a subsequent tremor with a magnitude of 6.4 was recorded 12 minutes later.
On April 9, John Moe The shared with his 300,000 TikTok followers that a ‘very strong’ earthquake would strike Myanmar in 12 days.
“People should not stay in tall buildings during the day,” he advised.
He urged people to “take important things with you and run away from buildings during the shaking,” predicting the quake would affect “every city in Myanmar.”
However, on Tuesday, April 22, authorities arrested John Moe The, 21, following a raid on his home in Monywa city.
The military government of Myanmar released a statement on April 24, saying: “We got a tip-off about fake news being spread through a TikTok account that a severe earthquake will hit.”
The statement continued, “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.”
While John Moe The frequently issues warnings about possible future disasters, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has clarified that it is scientifically impossible to predict earthquakes in advance.
The USGS stated, “Neither the USGS nor any other scientists have ever predicted a major earthquake.”
“We do not know how, and we do not expect to know how any time in the foreseeable future.”
The lack of education on such matters is evident in some regions. Local resident Nan Nan informed AFP that many of her neighbors took John Moe The’s TikTok video seriously.
“Most of my neighbors dared not to stay in their apartments and lived out on the street on that day,” she reported to the media outlet.
“My friend even hired a small house outside Yangon in preparation.”