CHANGSHA - The heavy rains that began pounding southern China regions on Sunday has left 46 dead, 50 missing and millions of local residents affected, the Ministry of Civil Affairs said Thursday morning.

Storms also snarled transportation, delayed flights, blocked highways and caused power outages in parts of the country.

Flash floods and landslides caused by the heavy rains have caused casualties and economic losses in 74 county-level cities in six southern provincial-level regions, including Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan, Jiangxi, Guangxi and Sichuan, the ministry said in a notice on its website on Thursday.