Old videos were falsely claimed that they showed the effects of tremor after Russia’s sparse Far East was shaken by one of the strongest earthquakes recorded in late July. In fact, the clips were recorded in March, when Myanmar was hit by a magnitude 7.7 earthquake.
“Tonight (July 30), a powerful 8.7-magnitude earthquake hit the Kanchitka Peninsula in Russia, and was classified as a ‘very shallow earthquake’.”
The clip appears to show CCTV footage inside the store, as the tremor hits and the shelf falls.
Similar Tiktok videos also shared on July 30 showed staff collages under the table as earthquake strikes.
“Sad news from Russia. There were 8.7 earthquakes this morning and a tsunami followed,” its Indonesian language title read.
Screenshots of Fake Lines and Tiktok Posts were captured on July 31, 2025, AFP added red XS
They surfaced for hours after an 8.8-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Kanchitka Peninsula in the Far East of Russia, prompting evacuation and tsunami alerts in parts of the Pacific coast (a link to archive).
However, fears about the disaster fade away, and the countryside once again lifted the warning or downgrade warning and told coastal residents that they could return.
The circulating clips are also shared in similar Douyin, Facebook, Instagram and X posts.
But the clip actually shows the effects of different earthquakes.
Myanmar Temblor
A careful analysis of the first error-sharing clip shows the time code at its top corner, which read “2025-03-28”, which was the time of a magnitude 7.7 earthquake northwest of Saga City in central Myanmar (link to archive).
More than 3700 people Killed in the earthquake, which destroyed many homes and businesses (links to archives).
Screenshot of fake shared clips and amplified time code by AFP
Reverse image search on Google using keyframes in the wrongly shared clip, which searched for a longer version that was shared on Tiktok on March 30 on Tiktok via an account called “Top One Mobile” (archive link).
“It’s not easy to run in three seconds,” its Burmese language title reads.
Screenshot Comparison of Error Shared Clips (left) and Tiktok Videos released in March (right)
The account also shared similar videos from different angles (archive links).
The subsequent keyword search resulted in the same video posted on the YouTube channel “2025 Sagaing Eartquake Archive” which showed a store in Myanmar TADA-U (archive link).
Google Maps Maps Top One Store Front matched images other videos posted by Tiktok account (archived here and here).
Analysis of the second error-sharing clip shows that the decals on the wall are laid on “Lady Bug”.
The combination of keyword search and reverse image search resulted in the release of Tiktok video on May 7, an account called Lady Bug (archive link) by salons and cosmetics vendors.
The video’s Burmese language title includes the hashtag for the March 28 earthquake and says the staff shown in the video are safe.
The date “2025-03-28” can also be seen in the top corner of the video.
Comparison of screenshots of error-sharing clips (left) and videos released in May (right)
The store also shared the video on its Facebook page on May 11 and announced that the branch of Mandalay’s 62nd Street must be demolished due to damage caused by the magnitude (a link to archive).
It added: “We are looking for new locations for the store and we will be back soon.”
Google Maps Image Mandalay Location Image now shows a flat plot (archive link).
AFP also debunked other misinformation, which often surfaced after natural disasters, related to the July 30 earthquake.
