Heavy rainfall in south China over the last few days has left 21 people dead and four others missing, said the Ministry of Civil Affairs on Tuesday.

As of 9 a.m. on Tuesday, torrential rains in seven Chinese provincial- level regions -- Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Chongqing and Guizhou, have affected more than 1.16 million people and forced 17,000 to leave their homes, the ministry said in a statement.

A total of 6,600 people are in need of emergency sustenance assistance, it said, while 1,600 houses have been toppled and 55,000 damaged.

The floods inundated 47,600 hectares of crops and caused direct economic losses of 650 million yuan (105.7 million U.S. dollars), according to the statement.

Since Thursday last week, some areas have witnessed as much as 300 mm of rainfall. There have also been thunder and hailstorms.

Weather forecasts indicated that heavy rain may continue this week.