Severe rain, which has been lashing China's southwest Chongqing since Sunday, has killed one person and affected 117 towns and 380,000 people as of 6:00am Tuesday. Four people reported missing have still not been found.

The damage from the rainstorm that caused several flash floods has amounted to a direct economic loss estimated at 300 million yuan ($44 million).

The Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydropower project, was closed Monday as it braced for the biggest flood crest this summer, according to state media Xinhua News agency.

Water entered the Three Gorges Reservoir at 41,000 cubic meters per second as heavy rain hit the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, including Chongqing.

Every year there is flash floods since no precautionary measure is taken, especially in the Qijiang area, a local resident in Beibei District of Chongqing told IBTimes reporter on condition of anonymity. He added that Chongqing main city is usually not affected so much as other parts.

The resident also said that some Ancient towns have suffered from floods many time and repairs will be done afterwards, like Ciqikou town (formerly Hidden Dragon Town), located 14 km west of Chongqing banks of the Jialing River.

China