>>> out of typhoon-stricken philippines are staggering after one of the most powerful typhoons in history. tonight the international red cross estimates typhoon haiyan left more than 1,000 people dead. communications are difficult. humanitarian relief crews are slowly making their way into the hardest hit areas. wind gusts reached 175 miles per hour. storm surges as high as trees laid waste to towns and villages . speaking from the city of tacloban , philippines interior minister said, quote, all systems, all vestiges of modern living, communications, power, water, all are down. tonight the pentagon says it is dispatching u.s. military forces to the region to assist in the recovery. tacloban , the city hardest hit, is 360 miles from manila. that's where the humanitarian response is being coordinated. it's where we find correspondent angus walker now with the very latest. angus?  >> reporter: as every hour passes we are getting a clearer picture of the devastation here as rescuers begin to make their way into the worst affected areas. tonight one thing is clear. the damage is far worse than people had feared. it's been 24 hours since super typhoon haiyan roared ashore in the philippines with winds of more than 150 miles an hour. flattening entire cities.  >> there were heavy winds, heavy rains. no power, no cell phones while the storm passed.  >> we have so many dead people . we don't have bags. bags for the dead.  >> reporter: the death toll stands now at 1200 but is expected to rise sharply as rescue teams reach remote villages.  >> thousands of homes are completely wiped out. not only the rain. then the water sweeps in and it can take out entire towns and villages .  >> reporter: one of the hardest hit areas, the city of tacloban home to 220,000 people. surrounded on three sides by water. surging ocean waves 40 feet high submerged most of the city.  >> the devastation is -- it's -- i don't have the words for it. it's really horrific.  >> reporter: reporter ata marulo reported live as the typhoon beared down. later retreating to a second floor hotel as the streets quickly became rivers. storm chaser jim edds rode out the storm tweeting this picture as the storm was approaching. on facebook today he wrote, amount of casualties significant, so many bodies left behind from the surge. security becoming a concern with looting. water supply getting low. these satellite photos show the immense storm, the strongest ever to hit land, eclipsing the entire country as it moved over the island nation of nearly 100 million. the massive storm caused widespread flooding, triggered landslides and knocked out power and communication to large parts of the country. tonight, vietnam is now on alert as the storm pushes west forecast to hit sunday afternoon. more than half a million residents evacuated to shelter and higher ground. experienced aid workers say they haven't seen anything like this since the asian tsunami in 2004 . that's not a comparison that should be
Video on msnbc.com: One official says Typhoon Haiyan’s aftermath has left so many deceased his  city doesn’t have enough body bags to handle all the dead.