The Philippines has accused Chinese Coast Guard ships of firing water cannons at three Philippine supply vessels near a disputed shoal in the South China Sea.

Officials in Manila said on Saturday that the incident took place in the vicinity of the Scarborough Shoal, some 200 kilometers west of the island of Luzon.

The officials also said water cannons had been used at least eight times, resulting in damage to communication and other equipment on one of the three Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources ships.

Footage released shows one Philippine vessel, sandwiched between two Chinese Coast Guard ships, being hit with blasts of water.

Philippine officials also said a suspected Chinese maritime militia vessel used an acoustic device to cause severe discomfort to some Filipino crew.

The Philippine National Security Council condemned the act as "not only illegal but also inhumane."

It also stressed that a 2016 ruling by an international arbitration tribunal also recognized that the Philippines has traditional fishing rights in the waters around the Scarborough shoal.

Meanwhile, the China Coast Guard announced that it implemented control measures in accordance with the law against three Philippine Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Bureau vessels that entered the waters around Huangyan Island, using the Chinese name for the shoal.