Ecuador residents struggle to cope a month after quake

PEDERNALES, Ecuador — A month after a devastating earthquake flattened the Ecuadoran beach town of Pedernales, people are still living in tarp shelters and schools remain closed.

Officials deployed a giant flag over the town Monday to commemorate those who died in the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that killed 660 and initially left tens of thousands homeless.

President Rafael Correa has hiked taxes to fund the recovery but says it will take years to rebuild the beach towns and tourist hubs leveled by the quake.

International workers are working with the government to set up hundreds of temporary schools and living spaces, and victims are getting psychological and medical services.

[...] more than 100,000 children remain out of school, according to a report released Monday by the U.N. Children’s Fund, which said it had not received the donations it needs to attend to the disaster.