The scenes in Tacloban are of absolute devastation. The vast majority of the thousands killed by Typhoon Haiyan died in the coastal city on the Philippine island of Leyte.<br /><br />Barely a building remains standing in some areas. Local people describe a giant wave hitting the city of 200,000 people, destroying everything in its path.<br /><br />Many are looking for missing relatives and friends, while scavenging for food and water as they struggle to survive.<br /><br />Numbed by the tragedy, one woman says she just needs a shirt to wear – adding that she thanks God, believing the typhoon will change people for the better.<br /><br />In the meantime a state of calamity has been declared, hundreds of soldiers and police deployed, and a curfew imposed amid reports of looting.<br /><br />Among the debris, women have been giving birth while the stench of dead bodies fills the air.<br /><br />A college student said he hoped the Philippine flag he found in the rubble will be used as a symbol of the country’s revival.<br /><br />For now people have walked miles to converge on the airport, hoping to benefit from the first emergency supplies as they begin slowly to arrive.
