US Organizes Aid Shipments

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The U.S. government is organizing emergency shipments of materials to provide shelter to hundreds of thousands of displaced Filipinos, in the aftermath of a typhoon that may have killed thousands.

Secretary of State John Kerry says the shipments also include food and hygiene supplies for thousands of families.

He says he's told the Philippines' foreign minister that the U.S. is full committed to helping that nation recover from one of the most powerful typhoons on record.

Philippine soldiers are distributing food and water in the devastated city of Tacloban, where only a few buildings remain standing after a typhoon that may have killed 10,000 people.

The country's president has declared a "state of national calamity," allowing the central government to release emergency funds faster and impose price controls on staple goods.