HEAVY rain and hail forced the cancellation of some relief flights to earthquake-stricken regions yesterday and survivors scuffled over the badly needed food.

As the death toll in South East Asia continued to rise yesterday, the international community began to absorb the extent of what may be the worst natural disaster in recent history and began reacting accordingly.

The Government pledged tonight to keep up the pressure on Sudanese authorities, vowing maximum support for refugees in the war-torn country.

Rescue teams were combing the rubble of mud-and-stone houses today after a massive earthquake killed more than 550 people in a desperately poor region of northern Morocco.

A thunderstorm packing high winds and torrential rains hit the area around central China’s Dongting Lake today, raising the threat to already strained dikes protecting several cities and dozens of villages.

The water level of a rain-swollen lake in central China today climbed far past the danger mark, increasing pressure on dikes that were keeping flood waters from swamping six cities and dozens of villages.