1 month on, progress in Philippine typhoon zone

Earvin Nierva, left, kisses his bride Riza as they pose for their wedding pictures beside damaged homes and a ship that was washed ashore when Typhoon “Yolanda” hit Tacloban city, central Philippines on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2013. The newly-wed couple decided to have the photo shoot at the area to symbolize that they can overcome tragedy and to urge residents to “stand up and rise again.” They are residents of Tacloban and also victims of the typhoon. AP

TACLOBAN, Philippines — One month since Typhoon “Yolanda” (international name “Haiyan”) ravaged the central Philippines, there are signs of progress mixed with reminders of the scale of the disaster.

The government is back at work, and markets are laden with fruits, pork, fish and bread. The sounds of a city getting back on its feet fill the air: the roar of trucks hauling debris, the scrape of shovel along pavement, the ping of hammer on nails.

But bodies are still being uncovered from beneath the debris in the hardest hit city of Tacloban. Tens of thousands are living amid the ruins of their former lives, underneath shelters made from scavenged materials and handouts.

“Yolanda” plowed through Tacloban and other coastal areas, leaving over 5,700 dead and more than 1,700 missing. Some 4 million people were displaced.