BEIJING, June 5: A week of torrential rains and heavy flooding has killed at least 204 people in China and left 79 others missing, but forecasters warned the worst was yet to come, state media reported on Sunday. The heavy downpours, which began in many parts of China last week, have affected more than 17 million people, including many who have lost property or been forced to flee flooded areas, Xinhua news agency said.

Official statistics showed that 614,000 hectares of farmland were destroyed and 137,900 rooms damaged as flooding affected several provinces, Xinhua said. Tens of thousands of livestock have also been killed.

Strong rainfall is expected to pound the Yangtze River, China’s longest river, in the coming 10 days and trigger more floods and landslides, according to China’s Meteorological Bureau.

In coming days, the Three Gorges area of the river is expected to see 35 to 50 millimeters of rainfall, more than the typical 30-45 millimeters in previous years. The river will enter an even rainier period starting mid-June.

Local governments across the country have been ordered to mobilise resources to battle the floods, with the focus on ensuring major rivers and reservoirs are not breached.

Vice Premier Hui Liangyu told a meeting of the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters on Saturday that measures should be taken to reduce human casualties and keep property loss to a minimum, Xinhua said.

The worst-affected province was Hunan in central China where 75 people were reported dead and 46 others missing, said Xinhua.

The province had previously reported a toll of 60. Xinhua did not say whether the new casualty figure has been included in the nationwide toll of 204.

Economic losses in the province were estimated at 2.3 billion yuan (277 million US dollars), said Xinhua. A total of 67,000 houses were flattened and another 193,000 houses damaged.

Hundreds of government officials and soldiers were working in the disaster-hit areas to rescue survivors and find the missing, and to disinfect areas to prevent disease outbreaks.—-AFP