Thousands Feared Dead After Super Typhoon Haiyan Slams Philippines
Updated: Some reports put the death toll as high as 10,000.
Updated — Nov. 10, 9:09 a.m. ET
One of the most powerful typhoons ever recorded slammed into the Philippines. Thousands are feared dead.
Bodies were lying in the streets of Tacloban, according to an initial report from an aviation officer, the deputy director general of the Philippines' Civil Aviation Authority said early Saturday.
Gwendolyn Pang, secretary general of the Philippine Red Cross, said Saturday that at least 1,200 were killed. Reuters reports the number could be as high as 10,000.
A U.N. disaster team arriving to the area Saturday was shocked by the scenes of total devastation.
"The last time I saw something of this scale was in the aftermath of the Indian Ocean Tsunami," United Nations Disaster Assessment Coordination Team Chief Sebastian Rhodes Stampa said. "This is destruction on a massive scale. There are cars thrown like tumble weed and the streets are strewn with debris."
The Philippines' central islands were particularly hard hit as extreme winds and giant waves flattened communities across the area.
A mother weeps beside the dead body of her son at a chapel in Tacloban.
Surviving children were seen playing near downed power lines after the typhoon ripped through Tacloban.
Victims lined up for relief aid after the storm passed.
NASA Astronaut Karen Nyberg captured this image of the typhoon from the International Space Station as it exited the Philippines.
Haiyan weakened to a typhoon early Saturday but could return to super typhoon status before it is forecast to slam Vietnam on Sunday, CNN reported.
A house is engulfed by Haiyan's storm surge in Legazpi city, Albay province on Friday Nov.8.
Debris litter the road by the coastal village in Legazpi city which was slammed by Haiyan on Friday, Nov. 8.
Super Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest storms in recorded history, made landfall in the Philippines early Friday.
The clouds from the massive storm are affecting two-thirds of the country, extending more than 1,150 miles, CNN reported.
The storm's strength is equivalent to an extremely powerful Category 5 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 195mph and gusts up to 235mph.
Haiyan is far more powerful than Hurricane Katrina was before it struck the U.S. with devastating effect in 2005.
If Haiyan were located off the U.S. East Coast, the massive storm would stretch from Florida to New York.
Haiyan is believed to be the strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall in recorded history, Dr. Jeff Masters said.
The storm is forecast to barrel through the Philippines' central region Friday and Saturday before blowing toward the South China Sea over the weekend.
Super Typhoon Haiyan headed for Philippines. Sustained winds: 195 & gusts to 235 !! @wusa9 @hbwx @ericagrow
Topper Shutt
@Toppersweather
Super Typhoon Haiyan headed for Philippines. Sustained winds: 195 & gusts to 235 !! @wusa9 @hbwx @ericagrow
This picture from space of Super Typhoon Haiyan is haunting. (Courtesy: 2013 EUMETSAT)
David Meyers
@davidfmeyers
This picture from space of Super Typhoon Haiyan is haunting. (Courtesy: 2013 EUMETSAT)
More than 252,000 people living in vulnerable areas were evacuated in anticipation of the potentially devastating storm.
Philippine Coast Guard Chief Rear Adm. Rodolfo Isorena (center) checks newly acquired rubber boats that will be deployed to central Philippines in preparation for the storm's onslaught. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)
Time to flee from #YolandaPH #Haiyan. These are all the worldy possessions of one family in MARABUT, Eastern Samar
Atom Araullo
@atomaraullo
Time to flee from #YolandaPH #Haiyan. These are all the worldy possessions of one family in MARABUT, Eastern Samar
A journalist, @atomaraullo, posted videos of the typhoon hitting Tacloban in the Leyte province of the Philippines.
Watch the video here.
Watch the video here.
The damage from the super typhoon is already becoming apparent.
PHOTO: Ormoc City Terminal less than an hour ago | via @mimikins_sandy
YouScoop
@YouScoop
PHOTO: Ormoc City Terminal less than an hour ago | via @mimikins_sandy
Incredible before & after image of damage caused by #Yolanda in #Tacloban City
NJ Weather Blogs
@NJWeatherBlogs
Incredible before & after image of damage caused by #Yolanda in #Tacloban City
6 houses in Cateel, Davao Oriental were washed away by huge waves last night. #YolandaPH @ABSCBNNews
Hernel Tocmo
@HernelTocmo
6 houses in Cateel, Davao Oriental were washed away by huge waves last night. #YolandaPH @ABSCBNNews
"This is really a wallop. All roads are impassable due to fallen trees," Southern Leyte Gov. Roger Mercado said on ABS-CBN television.
Ang bumagsak na malaking puno ng Acacia sa Irosin Sorsogon. | @DZMMTeleRadyo
Johnson Manabat
@johnsonmanabat
Ang bumagsak na malaking puno ng Acacia sa Irosin Sorsogon. | @DZMMTeleRadyo
Despite coming ashore in the island nation, the storm is not losing much of its strength because there is no large land mass to slow it down.
According to the Philippine Department of Social Welfare and Development, 174,000 people have been declared homeless due to damaged property.
Rainbow and Lightning over Manilla, Philippines #EarthPics
Google Earth Pics
@GoogleEarthPics
Rainbow and Lightning over Manilla, Philippines #EarthPics
#Manila probably won't see it's highest storm surge til Sunday when winds shift out of the WSW. #YolandaPH #CNN
Mari Ramos
@MariRamosCNN
#Manila probably won't see it's highest storm surge til Sunday when winds shift out of the WSW. #YolandaPH #CNN
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Tasneem Nashrulla is a reporter for BuzzFeed News and is based in New York.
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