Looting Hits Phillippines Amid Widespread Damage from Supertyphoon Haiyan

At the Wall Street Journal, "Looting on Storm-Hit Island Prompts Calls for Martial Law."

Also, "Philippines Left Reeling in Wake of Storm":

ORMOC CITY, Philippines—Supertyphoon Haiyan left a central region of the Philippines in tatters, as authorities struggled to verify the number of dead and looting began in one of the hardest-hit cities.

In the coastal city of Tacloban, people ransacked shops, while food and medical stations were swamped by those in need. Rescue workers dug through rubble and mud in search of survivors.

President Benigno Aquino III said the city would be placed under a state of emergency to allow the central government to speed up relief and reconstruction efforts.

The typhoon, known locally as Yolanda, hit the Philippines on Friday, with fierce winds and heavy rains shredding homes, uprooting trees and flinging cars and boats.

The storm weakened as it made landfall in northeastern Vietnam early Monday, causing widespread power outages and triggering heavy rains that authorities feared may cause floods and landslides. Haiyan was expected to move inland toward the border with China.

Mr. Aquino said late Sunday the government was trying to verify the number of dead. The official toll stood at 229 but was expected to climb substantially.

The Philippine National Red Cross said the death toll could run into the thousands, adding that it was difficult to calculate the figure because the storm left bodies scattered over wide areas.

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