BEIJING, July 31, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - China said on Thursday that a total of 44 people were killed and nine were still missing following heavy rains that soaked swathes of the capital Beijing since last week.

"As of midday on July 31, some 44 people have died and nine are still missing as a result of the disasters across the whole of Beijing," top city official Xia Linmao told a news conference.