2010-07-20 01:40

XI'AN - Floods and landslides triggered by torrential rains have left at least 15 people dead and 54 missing in Northwest China's Shaanxi province, flood control authorities said late Monday.

The lives of more than 1.33 million people were disrupted by the heavy flooding in 23 counties and cities in the southern regions of the province, said officials in the provincial flood control headquarters.

Torrential rains have cut off roads, flattened homes, destroyed power facilities and flooded farmland in the worst-hit Ankang city, causing economic losses estimated at 881 million yuan ($129 million), said officials.

In the mountainous county of Langao in Ankang, three people were reported dead and 17 still missing after landslides and mud-rock flows struck several villages late Sunday.

Continuous rainfall has battered many Chinese provinces and regions over the past week.

In neighboring Sichuan province, flash floods and landslides left at least 26 people dead and more than 30 missing.

China is also preparing for the worst Yangtze flooding in more than a decade as water levels in the upper and middle sections of China's longest waterway continue rising.