The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Seoul

Torrential rains that lashed South Korea this week have led to the deaths of seven people and left six others missing, the government said Saturday.

Six people were also injured, with one in critical condition, in landslides and flash floods triggered by heavy rain that started battering the country Wednesday, the National Emergency Management Agency said in a statement.

Two people were found dead Saturday after they were reported missing in Bonghwa, 150 miles southeast of the capital Seoul, the statement said.

Three people also died Friday after their houses were pounded by landslides, it said. A day earlier, two South Korean soldiers were killed in a mudslide near their army base in Yanggu, about 110 miles east of Seoul.

The rainfall also damaged or flooded about 620 houses across South Korea, prompting 1,240 people to seek refuge elsewhere, the statement said. About 940 people later returned home, but the rest remained in local schools, community centers and other facilities.