Philippines death toll tops 3,900, almost 2 million homeless

Dozens of tents were set up outside a convention centre in typhoon-hit Tacloban city on Monday, as residents of the Philippinesleft homeless by Super Typhoon Haiyan sought shelter in blue tents pitched by the local government.

Authorities estimate more than 3,900 people were killed when TyphoonHaiyanmade landfall in the central Philippines and the sea surged ashore.

• David Common: on the ground with DART
• VIDEO: Survivors hole up at Tacloban airport
• Before and after photos of Typhoon Haiyan's destruction
• How you can help the survivors

Philippine authorities, the U.S. military and international agencies face a mounting humanitarian crisis, with the number of people displaced by the catastrophe estimated at four million, up from 900,000 late last week.

"Our situation here is not so good either. It smells bad, it's hot and it's very cold at night. There's also a shortage of food," said Annalyn Sabusap, one of those taking shelter in the tent city.

As they pick up the pieces of their lives, the uncertainty of the future looms above them.

"I don't know what we'll do. Whatever they wish to do with us, we'll just have to comply. After all, we don't have any homes to go back to," cried one man in the tent city. He said he was leaving his and his family's fate to the government.

The government aims to set up tent cities in the heavily hit areas as a temporary measure until permanent shelters are created, which officials said could take months.

The United Nations expressed fear on Monday that some Philippine islands have not been reached 10 days after disaster struck and President Benigno Aquino said the scale of suffering "tempted him to despair."

He welcomed the massive international assistance and aid that has been pouring into the Philippines.

Aquino and his government have come under fire for their slow response to the aftermath of the storm.

"We're hoping to draw on expertise from everybody willing to help us augment the resources that we have, and get people situated in a better situation at the quickest possible time," said Aquino who has been visiting affected areas since Sunday.

The World Bank is to extend a $500 million US emergency loan to support reconstruction of buildings that can withstand winds of 250 km/h to 280 km/h and resist severe flooding, it said in a statement.

Haiyan slammed central Philippine islands with 314 km/h winds, causing tsunami-like storm surges that swallowed nearly the whole of Tacloban, once home to 220,000 people, in Leyte and Guiuan town in Eastern Samar.

Almost 95 per cent of the deaths from the typhoon came from Leyte and Eastern Samar.