Cyclone Winston played a havoc in Fiji,wiped out villages, 21 people killed

Crops have been flattened, trees uprooted and villages completely decimated after the first category cyclone to hit Fiji tears through the region and brings the death toll to 21.

More than 8,100 people remain stranded in evacuations centres across Fiji after Tropical Cyclone Winston battered the island nation on Saturday. 

Winds reached speeds of up to 330 kilometres per hour (200mph) while waves of up to 12 metres battered the coast cutting communication for the some 900,000 residents braving the category five storm. 

Officials from the National Disaster Management Office say the death toll has risen from 17 to 21, with four people still missing at sea, the ABC reported. 

'This number is bound to change as we progress,' an NDMO spokesman said.  

Aerial photos have emerged showing the widespread devastation caused by the massive category five cyclone.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has pledged $5 million in emergency aid, as rescue workers warn of an imminent health crisis that will likely affect thousands of Fijians who are now struggling to find fresh food or water. 

Ms Bishop also said she would send a P-3 Orion aircraft and a number of rescue helicopters to help in rescue and recovery efforts.  

'Australia's thoughts are with the people of Fiji, particularly those who have lost family and friends as a result of Tropical Cyclone Winston, the largest recorded cyclone to hit the country,' she said. 

Ten fatalities occurred in Ra, Nadi and Lautoka and were caused mainly by flying debris and storm surges. 

There are also fears for seven fishermen from the Yasawas now believed to be missing at sea.

The severe tropical cyclone, the strongest ever recorded in the southern hemisphere, flattened scores of homes, crippled infrastructure and forced hundreds of terrified Fijians to shelter in evacuation centres. 

Relief efforts will continue on Monday after unrelenting rain and downed powerlines hampered officials trying to assess the damage caused by the powerful cyclone.

Oxfam's Pacific regional director Raijeli Nicole said the scale of the disaster would only become apparent when communications were restored with the remote communities that experienced the storm's full fury.

'The Fijians are desperately trying to repair severed lines of communication, but they hold grave fears that the news waiting for them will be dire,' she said.