Four children drowned and three other people are missing in the central Philippines after a small boat overturned in rough seas churned by Tropical Storm Rumbia, rescuers said Monday.

The victims were from several families who were travelling between two tiny islands on Saturday, said Rosario Cabrera, regional head of the civil defence office.

"The (boat) overturned due to big waves," Cabrera said in a written report. Her office sent a copy to AFP.

The dead children were aged between one month and eight years, she said.

Two children and an elderly woman were listed as missing, while the boat captain managed to swim to the nearby large island of Panay to raise the alarm.

On Sunday fishermen rescued eight people including four minors who had clung to sections of the overturned boat for 23 hours, the report said.

Rumbia sliced across the centre of the country last weekend, disrupting ferry services, local aviation and power supplies, which were all later restored.

The storm is now racing across the South China Sea towards southern China.