The physical devastation in the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan is as bad as Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, a humanitarian charity has said.

CEO of GOAL Barry Andrews said that according to his staff on the ground, the damage to residencies, businesses and other properties is on par with the destruction caused by the Haiti earthquake, in which the Haitian government estimated that 250,000 residents and 30,000 commercial buildings collapsed or were severely damaged.

But while the death toll estimates following the Haiti earthquake ranged from 100,000 to 159,000 - with the government claiming up to 316,000 people may have died - around 5,000 were killed when Typhoon Haiyan ripped through the Philippines two weeks ago.

"Clearly the death toll hasn't been as bad and I think that's a tribute to the efforts of the Filipino government in terms of continuously planning and putting in place evacuation centres. Many lives were saved through that preparation," said Andrews.

GOAL has gathered 40 tonnes of humanitarian aid and has teamed up with Aer Lingus to transport the supplies, first to Dubai and then onto the Philippines.