( CNN ) -- One of the worst-hit cities in the Philippines , Tacloban , has been completely devastated by Typhoon Haiyan . The capital city of Leyte province , nearly 400 miles south-east of Manila , was one of the first places hit by the storm . Around 200,000 people were made homeless in a matter of hours as a wall of ocean water flattened their houses . Tacloban City Stadium was one of just a handful of structures in the area to withstand the storm , despite its coastal location . It is now being used as a refugee center where thousands of people have taken shelter . Scroll the slider above to see the stadium before and after the storm . CNN 's Ivan Watson toured the typhoon-devastated Tacloban region by air , read his personal account of the destruction he saw .
The stadium was one of just a handful of structures in Tacloban to withstand the storm . It is now being used as a refugee center where thousands have taken shelter . Scroll the slider above to see the Tacloban stadium before and after the storm .