AP - Soldiers rushed to shore up a dam cracked by this week's powerful earthquake, and rescuers came by helicopter and ship Wednesday into the isolated epicenter but still were forced to dig for survivors with their bare hands.

AP - Hundreds of dams around the epicenter of China's earthquake have been damaged and Chinese troops scrambled Wednesday to plug cracks and open sluices to prevent flooding of already devastated communities.

AP - The Red Cross estimated Wednesday that the cyclone death toll in Myanmar could be as high as 128,000 — a much larger figure than the government tally. The U.N. warned a second wave of deaths will follow unless the military regime lets in more aid quickly.

AP - A frustrated U.N. chief said Wednesday he secured support from Myanmar, its neighbors and key donors Wednesday to increase the flow of cyclone relief aid and to convene a possible donors' conference this month.

AP - The U.S.-backed Cabinet on Wednesday reversed measures against the militant Hezbollah movement that set off Lebanon's worst violence since the 1975-90 civil war.

AFP - Cricket chiefs are seeking a compromise to salvage Texan billionaire Allen Stanford's multi-million pound investment in English cricket which threatens to run into conflict with the sport's laws.