Ecuador quake toll climbs over 400, damage put at billions of dollars - Reuters

Touring a city ravaged by the earthquake that killed at least 413 people, Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa on Monday said rebuilding would cost billions of dollars and may inflict a "huge" toll on the fragile OPEC nation's economy.

Two days after the magnitude 7.8 quake, traumatized survivors begged Correa for water in the city of Portoviejo, while a football stadium in the beach town of Pedernales served as a makeshift relief centre and morgue.

Afraid of staying indoors, or with no home to go back to, families huddled in the streets, while police and soldiers patrolled in a bid to control looting.

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