Communities in the Inle Lake area of Nyaungshwe Township, southern Shan State still struggling to recover from the deadly 28 March 2025 earthquake now have to confront the risk of flooding.

As the rainy season gets underway torrential rain has fallen in Shan State over the last few days which has caused the waters of Inlay Lake to rise by approximately one foot (30cm).

Houses in many villages on the edge of the lake are built on stilts over the lake. In many of these villages reconstruction following the earthquake has not been completed due to a shortage of carpenters and many villagers are still living in temporary accommodation that is threatened by the rising floodwaters.

A local youth involved in recovery efforts said: “Many houses that collapsed during the earthquake still haven’t been rebuilt. People living in makeshift tarpaulin tents are struggling a lot, especially now with the rainy season and daily downpours. As the lake water rises, we’re thinking it’ll be necessary to build higher temporary platforms and move the tents up onto them.”

The rainy season started about a month early this year. As well as causing flooding around Inle, the early rain has also caused rice farmers to worry that their fields will flood destroying their rice crop before they have time to harvest it.

The aforementioned youth said: “The rainy season came nearly a month early this year, and the water level is already rising quickly. Farmers are really anxious because their rice crops haven’t fully grown yet. Last year, floods wiped out many rice fields around Inle Lake, so there’s real concern it could happen again. With everything Inle has gone through—earthquake, drought, flood—it’s been one hardship after another. It’s just too much.”

Continuous heavy rain over the last few days has also led to flooding in Taunggyi City, the Shan State capital.

Recovery efforts in several villages in the Inle Lake area have gained some momentum, thanks to support from the Shan State government, aid agencies, and donors. They have provided food so that there are no longer food shortages. Food, bamboo poles and construction materials have also been provided.

The 28 March 7.7 magnitude earthquake destroyed around 3,500 homes in about 30 villages around Inle Lake. Nearly all of those villages now also face drinking water shortages and diarrhoea outbreaks have been reported in the Inle Lake villages of Killar, Zayatgyi, Nampan, and Sheywagyi.