At least 10 dead in Myanmar floods

Floods triggered by torrential monsoon rains have killed at least 10 people in Myanmar in the last 48 hours, state media and officials reported Sunday.

Six people were killed by flash floods on Saturday in Thabeikkyin, central Mandalay Region, the Ministry of Information said, while another three perished the same day in Thibaw, northern Shan State.

A 19-year-old boy also died in Muse, Shan State, on Friday, the ministry said.

State media Sunday said those killed in Thibaw were swept to their deaths as they stood watching rising floodwaters from a 100-year-old bridge which collapsed.

The Global New Light of Myanmar ran pictures of a picturesque stone bridge sliced in half by a raging brown torrent, and said rescue workers were dispatched to try and find the victims' bodies.

Western and northern parts of Myanmar have been hit by heavy rainfall in recent days with some areas of Shan State, a mountainous and particularly impoverished region seeing as much as 170mm of rain in the last 24 hours.

The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said up to 12,000 houses have also been damaged in Sagaing Region and Kachin State during recent rains.

Myanmar is struck by annual monsoon rains that are a lifeline for farmers but can also prove deadly, with landslides and flash floods a common occurrence.