Residents walk past a house damaged by Typhoon Phanfone in Tacloban, Leyte province in the Philippines on Wednesday. The typhoon pummeled the central Philippines on Christmas Day, bringing a wet and miserable holiday season to millions in the mainly Catholic nation. Photo: AFP

A typhoon that swept across remote villages and popular tourist areas of the central Philippines on Christmas Day claimed at least 16 lives, authorities said Thursday.

Typhoon Phanfone, with winds of 195 kilometers an hour, tore roofs off houses and toppled electric posts as it cut across the Philippines on Wednesday. 

With the internet and mobile phone networks still cut off in some badly damaged areas, a full assessment of Phanfone's damage was not immediately possible on Thursday morning.

But at least 16 people had been confirmed killed in villages and towns in the Visayas, the central third of the Philippines, according to disaster agency officials.

Phanfone also hit Boracay, Coron and other holiday destinations that are famed for their white-sand beaches and popular with foreign tourists.

The airport at Kalibo, which services Boracay, was badly damaged, according to a Korean tourist who was stranded there and provided images to AFP.

Tens of thousands of people in the mostly Catholic nation had been forced to evacuate their homes on Wednesday, ruining Christmas celebrations.

Many others were not able to return to their families, with ferries and plane services suspended.

The Philippines is the first major landmass facing the Pacific typhoon belt, and is hit by an average of about 20 major storms a year.

AFP