Aid flowing into Philippines typhoon zone

Philippine military personnel unload relief goods to be distributed to those affected by Typhoon Haiyan at the airport in Tacloban, Philippines, Monday, Nov. 18, 2013. Survivors of Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful typhoons ever recorded, have only now begun to receive some aid, a week after their homes and lives were torn apart. AP

TACLOBAN, Philippines – Aid workers, heavy equipment and relief supplies have begun flowing into regions devastated by Typhoon “Yolanda” (international name: Haiyan).

Regional military commander Lt. Gen. Roy Deveraturda said Monday that the “darkest night was over, but it’s not yet 100 percent.”

At the main airport in Tacloban, a pay loader was shifting pallets of water and sacks of rice to trucks. On the main road, teams were shifting debris into trucks.

The Nov. 8 typhoon killed or left missing more than 5,000 people and left hundreds of thousands homeless.

The first week of the response was inevitable chaotic because airports into the region were damaged and local governance structures shattered.

Military and civilian teams from around the world have arrived to bolster the immediate response by authorities and the communities themselves.

Some shops and gasoline stations have begun to re-open in hard-hit towns. One stall was selling barbequed pig on Sunday in Tacloban.

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