Mobs
overran a rice warehouse on the island worst hit by the Philippine
typhoon, setting off a wall collapse that killed eight people and
carting off thousands of sacks of the grain, while security forces
yesterday exchanged gunfire with an armed gang.
The
incidents in or close to the storm-ravaged city hosting international
relief efforts add to concerns about the slow pace of aid distribution
and that parts of the disaster zone are descending into chaos.
Five long days after Typhoon Haiyan wasted the eastern seaboard of the Philippines, the cogs of what promises to be a massive international aid effort are beginning to turn, but not quickly enough for the some 600,000 people displaced, many of them homeless, hungry and thirsty.
"There's a bit of a logjam, to be absolutely honest, getting stuff in here," said United Nations staffer Sebastian Rhodes Stampa against the roar of a C-130 transport plane landing behind him at the airstrip in Tacloban, one of the hardest-hit cities.
"It's almost all in country, either in Manila or in Cebu, but it's not here. We're going to have a real challenge with logistics, in terms of getting things out of here, into town, out of town, into the other areas," he said. "The reason for that essentially is that there are no trucks - the roads are all closed."
Planes, ships and trucks were all on their way to the region, loaded with generators, water-purifying kits and emergency lights, vital equipment needed to sustain a major relief mission. Airports were reopening in the region, and the United States military said it was installing equipment to allow the damaged Tacloban airport to operate 24-7.
Five long days after Typhoon Haiyan wasted the eastern seaboard of the Philippines, the cogs of what promises to be a massive international aid effort are beginning to turn, but not quickly enough for the some 600,000 people displaced, many of them homeless, hungry and thirsty.
"There's a bit of a logjam, to be absolutely honest, getting stuff in here," said United Nations staffer Sebastian Rhodes Stampa against the roar of a C-130 transport plane landing behind him at the airstrip in Tacloban, one of the hardest-hit cities.
"It's almost all in country, either in Manila or in Cebu, but it's not here. We're going to have a real challenge with logistics, in terms of getting things out of here, into town, out of town, into the other areas," he said. "The reason for that essentially is that there are no trucks - the roads are all closed."
Planes, ships and trucks were all on their way to the region, loaded with generators, water-purifying kits and emergency lights, vital equipment needed to sustain a major relief mission. Airports were reopening in the region, and the United States military said it was installing equipment to allow the damaged Tacloban airport to operate 24-7.
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