Floods have killed 125 people and left 34 people missing in China so far this year, the Office of State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters said Thursday.

A total of 23.09 million people and 1.55 million hectares of crops were affected by floods, which caused 16.9 billion yuan (US$2.47 billion) in direct economic losses, said a statement on the office website.

The deaths were mainly attributed to landslides in mountainous areas caused by heavy rains, said the statement.

The latest disaster occurred in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region early Wednesday, where rain-triggered landslides killed 38 people as of Thursday, according to local authorities.

The office called on local governments to step up monitoring and forecasting as well as inspecting dikes of reservoirs to prevent flooding and landslides.

(Xinhua News Agency June 4, 2010)