At least 33 people were killed in the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year, official tallies showed Saturday, with dozens more missing after the storm ravaged the country.

More than 300,000 people have fled their homes and beachfront resorts as the typhoon pummeled the southern and central regions of the country, knocking out communications in some areas and tearing roofs off buildings.

Meanwhile, more than 45,000 people have been evacuated to government shelters in Eastern Visayas region, local authorities said on Thursday. 

Rai was a super typhoon when it smashed into the popular tourist island of Siargao on Thursday, packing maximum sustained winds of 195 kilometres per hour (120 miles per hour). Its wind speed eased to 150 kph as it barreled across the country, dumping torrential rain that flooded villages, uprooting trees and shattering wooden structures. 

"This is indeed one of the most powerful storms that have hit the Philippines in the month of December in the last decade," Alberto Bocanegra, head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in the Philippines, told AFP.

(With input from AFP)