颱風海燕肆虐菲律賓後轉爲熱帶風暴登陸越南

One of the fiercest typhoons ever recorded has devastated the central Philippines, leaving entire cities and towns in ruins and as many as 10,000 people dead.

Aid groups are struggling to reach the hardest-hit areas where food and drinkable water are difficult to find.

The United States and several other countries are sending supplies and rescue personnel to the region. The first U.S. aid and military personnel flew Monday from Manila to Tacloban, one of the worst-hit areas.

The aid effort is being hampered by looting, as mobs not only grabbed food and water from stores, but also took consumer items like TVs, washing machines and refrigerators.

The fast-moving storm slammed into Leyte Island from the east on Friday. By Sunday, as the scale of the destruction became clear, Philippine authorities said it is near certain the death toll will rise substantially. President Benigno Aquino declared a region-wide state of calamity.

By early Monday, the storm began losing strength as it came ashore in Vietnam's northern Quang Ninh province and was downgraded to a tropical storm after making landfall. Forecasters expect it to weaken to a low depression later in the day in southern China.有記錄以來最強大的颱風之一肆虐菲律賓中部，將整座的城市和鄉鎮變成一片廢墟，有多達1萬人死亡。

救援組織正設法進入缺乏食物和飲水的重災區。美國和其他幾個國家向災區運送了物資和救援人員。美國第一批救援人員和軍人星期一從馬尼拉乘機前往災情最嚴重的地區之一塔克洛班市。

劫掠使得救援工作受到影響。一些人不僅搶劫商店的食物和水，還拿走電視、洗衣機和冰箱等消費品。

颱風海燕這股快速移動的風暴星期五從東部登陸菲律賓禮智島。星期天，已經可以明顯看到颱風的破壞規模。菲律賓當局說，幾乎可以肯定死亡人數將大幅上升。菲律賓總統阿基諾宣佈整個地區進入災難狀態。

星期一清晨，這場風暴在越南北部的廣寧省登陸，同時風力開始減弱，被降級爲熱帶風暴。氣象預報說，“海燕”星期一晚些時候將在中國南部地區減弱爲熱帶低壓。