Rescuers in the central Philippines counted at least 100 people dead and many more injured today, a day after one of the most powerful typhoons on record ripped through the region, wiping away buildings and levelling seaside homes with massive storm surges.

At least two people died when a passenger ferry with 237 people on board caught fire south of Manila, Philippines coastguard officials said today.

Typhoon Utor lashed the central and eastern Philippines today, killing four people, including two toddlers, and forcing more than 90,000 people to flee to evacuation centres, officials said.

The death toll from a tropical storm which hit the Philippines this week has risen to at least 110 as rescuers continue to recover bodies from under mud, boulders and collapsed homes on Camiguin Island.