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© APA man points to a large crack on a damaged road following a strong earthquake in Phan district of Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand, Monday, May 5, 2014. A strong earthquake shook northern Thailand and Myanmar Monday evening, and some light damage was reported.
A strong earthquake registering 6.3 Magnitude on the Richter Scale hit northern Thailand and Myanmar on Monday evening, damaging roads, buildings and Buddhist temples. No casualties have been reported, but buildings were evacuated in Chiang Rai, a northern Thai city near the epicenter.

The spire of the main building of the all-white Wat Rongkhun temple broke off, while display signs and sections of ceiling fell at the city's airport.

Speaking to a local TV station, the temple's architect, Chalermchai Kositpiphat, said, "I still don't know how we can sleep tonight. ... The building was shaking the whole time and then aftershocks followed four to five times. I don't know how many years it will take me to fix it. It was shaking like the earth was going to explode."

A road In Chiang Rai's Phan district was badly damaged as the land broke apart in places.

Bhuddists' prayers interrupted by the quake


People also evacuated buildings in Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, where no casualties were reported either.

Thailand's Meteorological Department said the quake was magnitude 6.3. The U.S. Geological Survey measured it at 6.0 and said the epicenter was 9 kilometers (6 miles) south of Mae Lao and 27 kilometers (17 miles) southwest of Chiang Rai. Its depth was a relatively shallow 7.4 kilometers (4.6 miles).

Several fault-lines run through Thailand, although it is generally less affected by strong earthquakes than other Southeast Asian countries. This was the strongest earthquake felt in the country since a magnitude 5.1 on 13 December 2006 in Chiang Mai province.

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A spire at the Chiang Rai White Temple broke off during the earthquake
Shoppers flee a mall in Chiang Rai