Ecuador tries to put the pieces together a month after quake

In this May 15, 2016 photo, tents set up for people displaced by last month's earthquake stand in rows at the new bus terminal in Pedernales, Ecuador. A month after the magnitude 7.8 earthquake many Ecuadorians are still struggling. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa) (The Associated Press)

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In this May 14, 2016 photo, the Zambrano family butchers a pig they found walking around outside their home in the fishing town of La Chorrera, Ecuador. The family's home was destroyed by the 7.8 earthquake one month ago, so they set up a tent for sleeping and stay on their property to protect what little they have left. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa) (The Associated Press)

In this May 14, 2016 photo, clothes dry on top of a tent set up for people displaced by the earthquake in Pedernales, Ecuador. About about 40 families are living at the Nueva Esperanza shelter after losing their homes in the 7.8 earthquake one month ago. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa) (The Associated Press)

PEDERNALES, Ecuador – A month after a devastating earthquake flattened the Ecuadorian beach town of Pedernales, people are still living in tarp shelters and schools remain closed. Just a third of the rubble has been swept from the streets.

Some of those whose homes were wrecked survive by sifting through trash and panhandling. And some go hungry.

The magnitude 7.8 earthquake on April 16 killed 660 and initially left tens of thousands homeless. Aid poured in from around the world, but officials say more than 7,000 people remain without a home.

Ecuador was already in one of Latin America's deepest recessions. 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.