The US Geological Survey said the quake struck just after 5pm Myanmar time (5.30pm Thailand time), 143 kilometres west of the city of Meiktila.

The agency put the preliminary magnitude of the earthquake at 6.8 and said it struck at a depth of about 84.1km.

The quake shook buildings in Myanmar’s biggest city of Yangon and in other towns and cities, witnesses said.

The earthquake was felt widely across the region with people in Chiang Mai and as far as Bangkok feeling the tremor.

Office buildings in Bangkok shook for a few seconds, residents said. Sakul Sanguansak, who lives on the 27th floor of a condominium in the capital, said she felt the quake and that the ceiling lamps in her room swayed. She added that she heard other residents in her building running down stairs.

A traffic website showed a video depicting lanterns at King Mongkut Hospital swaying back and forth during the quake.

The earthquake was also felt in Bangladesh, India, Laos and China, residents said. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.