Torrential rains and floods in southern China have left at least 20 people dead and two missing. More than 700,000 people have been relocated.

In Hunan, the provincial flood control office said eight people have been killed and 140,000 were forced out of their homes. In Guangxi, over 300-thousand people were relocated. There have been no reports of casualties in the province. The strong rain is subsiding in parts of Guangxi, but the water level of the Wuzhou section of Xijiang river continues to rise.

And, in Jiangxi province, three people who were previously reported as missing have been confirmed dead, bringing the province's death toll to five. About 230,000 people had to flee their homes.

The flood control headquarters in Jiangxi said that crops on 200,000 hectares of farmland have been damaged and thousands of homes toppled.And it also estimated direct economic losses in the province stood at more than 3-billion yuan.

(CCTV July 6, 2009)