DHAKA: Police in the Philippines say they fear 10,000 people may have died in the devastation wreaked by Typhoon Haiyan.

The Philippine government has so far only confirmed the death of several hundred people after the storm struck.

But regional police chief Elmer Soria said he was told by the provincial governor of Leyte that there were about 10,000 deaths on the eastern island alone.

Hundreds of thousands of people are reported displaced from their homes.

Philippine Interior Secretary Mar Roxas says the scale of the relief operation that is now required is overwhelming, with some places described as a wasteland of mud and debris.

Tecson Lim, city administrator of Tacloban in north east of Leyte, told the Associated Press that the death toll in the city alone "could go up to 10,000".

Meanwhile police chief Elmer Soria told Reuters about 70% to 80% of the area in the path of the storm in Leyte province was destroyed.

He reportedly said most of the deaths were from drowning or collapsed buildings.

Typhoon Haiyan - one of the most powerful storms on record to make landfall - swept through six central Philippine islands on Friday, wiping away homes.

It brought sustained winds of 235km/h (147mph), with gusts of 275 km/h (170 mph), with waves as high as 15m (45ft), bringing up to 400mm (15.75 inches) of rain in places.

The Pentagon has announced it is providing the Philippines with naval and aviation resources to help with humanitarian relief efforts.

In a statement, Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said the US was delivering helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft and search and rescue equipment after a request from the Philippines government.

Capt John Andrews, deputy director general of the Civil Aviation Authority in the Philippines, told the BBC he had flown over the worst affected areas and seen "utter destruction".

"I have never seen such damage in my life," he said.

"It would probably be similar to having a tornado run over a big open space. At the airport, there`s actually no structure left standing except the walls."

The typhoon is now bearing down on Vietnam, where tens of thousands are being evacuated.

The BBC Weather Centre says the typhoon is expected to make landfall south of Hanoi on Monday afternoon local time (between 03:00 and 09:00 GMT), although it will have decreased markedly in strength.

Source: BBC
BDST: 0902 HRS, NOV 10, 2013
RS/BSK