NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

 NATORI, MIYAGI PREFACTURE BEING HIT BY THE TSUNAMI AND AS SEEN ON JUNE 3.

KESENNUMA, MIYAGI PREFACTURE 48 HOURS AFTER THE TSUNAMI AND AS SEEN ON JUNE 3.

OTSUCHI TOWN, IWATE PREFACTURE, 48 HOURS AFTER THE TSUNAMI AND AS SEEN ON JUNE 3.

WORLD/ PROGRESS BEING MADE IN JAPAN: New before and after images have just been released that show the Japanese people remain undaunted by the havoc nature has wreaked on their homeland as step by step they rebuild their nation. It was just 3 months when the 9.0 earthquake and tsunami struck the East Coast of Japan and sent the nation into chaos. The unforgiving tide of water obliterated tens of thousands of buildings, devouring almost anything in its path. Thousands of people died and hundreds of bodies have never been recovered. The heart-breaking images of families desperately searching for loved ones amid the rubble of their homes sent shockwaves around the world. But progress is being made and people hope that by this time next year, the vast majority of the debris left behind will have been cleared away. The clean-up bill is expected to top $350 billion and radiation fears from the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant are still growing after 4 of the reactors were damaged leading to radiation leaks.

US/ FIREFIGHTERS MAKE PROGRESS IN ARIZONA FIRES: Firefighters in the US state of Arizona have begun slowly to wrest control of a huge wildfire that has scorched an area bigger than Los Angeles. The Wallow fire in eastern Arizona has now raged for 13 days, and is the 2nd largest in the state's history. Firefighters have lit controlled burns to diminish the fuel available to the wildfire, and a tanker aircraft has dropped retardant on the flames. But the 603-sq-mile blaze was only 5% contained late on Thursday. Some 22 houses in the eastern Arizona town of Greer were confirmed destroyed and 5 damaged. Winds have been moving the flames 5 to 8 miles per day since it started more than a week ago, possibly caused by an unattended campfire. Smoke rising from the flames had reached right across the country on Tuesday, visible 6 states to the east, and cancelled flights hundreds of miles away. About 2500 firefighters have fought the blaze, some coming in from as far away as New York.