Myanmar media reported that on January 9, a resident of Lashio City in northern Shan State said that a large number of Lashio people were leaving Lashio.
On January 7, 2024, after the town of Deni was completely occupied by three civil armed alliances in northern Myanmar, fierce fighting broke out in the vicinity of Lashio City, and then widespread news spread that the coalition forces were about to launch a siege battle against Lashio, causing a large number of Lashio people to leave.
One Lashio male said, "I left Lashio on January 8, and many people were at the intersection. I will send my family to the southern part of Shan State, and then I will return to my home in Lashio. The home cannot be left unguarded, because there are many criminals waiting to steal.
At present, the Lashio Mandalay Highway is interrupted, and people who leave Lashio can only take the Dangyang fork road, which needs to turn right from the Dangyang fork road to Bin Village, and then take the mountain road to Gongbang Village on the upper part of the Xin Yin Bridge, and then from Gongbang Village to the 9-mile fork road to Nanlan, and from Nanlan to Kyaukgok, from Kyaukkok you can go to Lauso, and then to the southern Shan State, or you can take the road from Kyaukgok to bypass Nau Qiu, and then follow the road to Pyinoo Lwin and Mandalay.
To get to southern Shan State via the Lashio Monya Highway, you need to walk about 100 miles more.
The person in charge of a public welfare organization in Lashio told that the 2014 national census data showed that there were only more than 60,000 people in the urban area of Lashio, but during the first period of the Democratic League, a lot of floating population entered, and the people who fled in the area entered the shelter, and it is estimated that there are more than 100,000 people.
The person in charge said that there are many refugees from Lao Cai and other areas, and now those who can afford to leave Lashio in their own cars, and some cars go to Mandalay, taking mountain roads, and the fares are very high. We don't go either, in case a war does break out in the city, we can still help, and we are already preparing.
The city of Lashio consists of 12 blocks, and then the city of Lashio has the military's Northeast Military Region Command. At present, there is widespread information that the three civil armed forces of northern Myanmar will attack and occupy the city of Lashio.
On January 5, 2024, fighting broke out between military forces and three civil armed alliances in northern Myanmar in the direction of Magino village near Lashio city, and military forces continued to carry out artillery shelling, which led to fears of fighting in the city, according to a local resident. At that time, everyone was very worried, and later they were even more worried when they learned that Dennie and Gui were occupied, so many of them left to hide.