A total of 79 people were killed or left missing in floods, landslides or mud-rock flows since mid May, the Ministry of Civil Affairs said here Friday.

Severe storms in southern China led to natural disasters in many provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, including Anhui, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Guangxi, Chongqing and Sichuan.

The Ministry said the disasters triggered by heavy rainfall had affected 13.57 million people, including 214,000 who had to be relocated.

The disasters destroyed 29,000 houses, causing direct economic losses of 1.71 billion yuan (US$225 million).

The ministry said work teams have been dispatched to the stricken areas to assist local governments in disaster relief.

A total of 3,186 people were killed by natural disasters in China last year.

(Xinhua News Agency June 2, 2007)