This is the lighthearted moment youngsters played on rafts during floods caused by super typhoon Rai in the Philippines.

Footage taken in Cagayan de Oro City in Misamis Oriental province on December 16 shows the boys riding the polystyrene boxes and inflatable rings while pushing each other around in the middle of the muddy deluge.

Onlooker Princess Danlag said: 'I didn't know if I should worry or laugh because despite the heavy rain, it seemed like they were just enjoying themselves. But aside from that, they also helped people who wanted to go through the flood.'

Typhoon Rai, known locally as Odette, smashed into the Philippines on December 16, with winds of up to 195 kilometres per hour, making its first landfall on Siargao island. The powerful typhoon left widespread devastation across the country’s Visayas and Mindanao Islands.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said more than 1.8 million people have been affected by Typhoon Rai, leaving at least 177 people dead.

Meanwhile, the latest data from the Philippine National Police said the death tally has reached 375 while the number of injuries is 515. The NDRRMC said it is now verifying the data.

Local government units in affected areas have reported power outages and telecommunication problems, with coastal areas suffering the brunt of the damage. The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines said it is still working on restoring electricity to the affected areas. An interim configuration has been set up to temporarily provide power in the provinces of Samar, Leyte, and Cebu in the meantime.

National weather agency Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said Typhoon Rai left the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Saturday December 18. It moved along China’s southeastern coast before weakening rapidly on Tuesday December 21.