At least 38 people have died in the Chinese capital region after it was battered by almost a year’s worth of rain in a handful of days.

Chinese state media say that 30 people have died in heavy rains and flooding in and around Beijing, raising the death toll from the flooding in the region to 34.

Authorities in Beijing's northern suburbs and adjacent provinces were scrambling to reach victims of deadly flooding caused by extreme rainy season downpours.