Typhoon Mirinae smashed through the Philippines overnight, killing 11 people and worsening floods in areas that were struggling to recover from recent deadly storms, officials said.

The typhoon, packing winds of up to 185 kilometres an hour, was the third major storm to hit the Philippines' main island of Luzon in just five weeks, with the previous two claiming more than 1,100 lives.

In Manila, areas that have been flooded since Tropical Storm Ketsana struck in late September were hit with more heavy rain, while residents in other districts were forced onto their roofs to escape rising waters.

"We need help because the waters have risen," the Mayor of Santa Cruz, Ariel Magcales, said.

"We need rubber boats and choppers.

"Some people are on the roofs of their houses."

Military and police rescue boats worked to save people who were trapped by a flash flood, officials said.

One man was found dead and his one-year-old baby was missing after they were washed away while trying to cross an overflowing creek in a rural area on the outskirts of Manila, the military said.

Three people were reported dead and five others were missing in Laguna province just south of Manila, the local disaster monitoring office said.

Seven people died in the Bicol region, south of Manila, mostly from flash floods, local disaster monitoring officials said.

Another man was missing from a Manila slum district after his hut was washed away, while two others were missing in Batangas province south of Manila after their car fell into a river when a bridge collapsed, civil defence spokesman Ernesto Torres said.

However, Mr Torres said more than 115,000 people had been evacuated from vulnerable regions before the typhoon hit, which likely prevented more deaths.

The typhoon caused power outages and knocked down trees across many areas of Manila, a sprawling city of 12 million people.

It also forced flights to be suspended on Saturday morning from Manila's international airport.

Ferries, a popular form of transport in the south-east Asian archipelago, were also cancelled, ruining travel plans for many who were hoping to head to their hometowns for the All Saints' Day long-weekend public holiday.

- AFP