The death toll from the storm in the Philippines has risen to 208.

MANILA, Philippines (AFP) – The death toll from the fiercest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year has risen to 208, making it one of the country’s worst storms in recent years, according to the national police.

Typhoon Rai wreaked havoc on the archipelago’s southern and central areas, leaving at least 239 people injured and 52 missing, according to a police report.

Rai, a super typhoon, blasted into the nation on Thursday, forcing more than 300,000 people to flee their homes and beachside resorts.

The Philippine Red Cross has described the coastal districts as “total devastation.”

Earlier, Red Cross Chairman Richard Gordon stated, “Homes, hospitals, schools, and community structures have been torn to bits.”

Roofs were ripped off, trees were uprooted, concrete power poles were collapsed, wooden buildings were crushed to bits, and communities were inundated, drawing analogies to Super Typhoon Haiyan in 2013.

In the Philippines, Haiyan, also known as Yolanda, was the worst hurricane on record, killing or missing more than 7,300 people.

Bohol, noted for its beaches, rolling “Chocolate Hills,” and small tarsier primates, was one of the hardest-hit islands this time, with at least 74 people killed, according to province governor Arthur Yap’s official Facebook page.

The islands of Siargao, Dinagat, and Mindanao, which bore the brunt of the storm as it slammed into the nation with wind gusts of 195 kilometres per hour (120 miles per hour), have also been devastated.

In Sunday, provincial information officer Jeffrey Crisostomo told AFP that at least ten people perished on the Dinagat Islands.

As residents struggle to locate water and food, S.O.S was painted on a road in the popular tourist town of General Luna on Siargao island, where surfers and vacationers had come ahead of Christmas.

There are no communications in large swaths of the devastated region, making it difficult for disaster relief agencies to estimate the entire scope of the storm’s destruction.

Water-refilling stations and ATMs were also affected by the power outage.

Thousands of military, police, coast guard, and firefighter personnel have been dispatched to aid in the search and rescue operation.

Heavy gear, such as backhoes and front-end loaders, have been despatched to help clear roads blocked by fallen power poles and trees, while the Coast Guard and navy vessels bringing food, water, and medical supplies have been dispatched.

Rai made landfall in the Philippines late in the typhoon season, when most cyclones form between July and October.

Scientists have long warned that as the globe warms as a result of human-caused climate change, typhoons would grow more powerful and stronger.

The Philippines, which is one of the world’s most susceptible countries to climate change, is slammed by an average of 20 storms and typhoons each year, destroying crops, houses, and infrastructure in already destitute areas.