17 June 2010 Last updated at 03:46 ET

Many killed by Burma landslides

Landslides and floods caused by torrential rain have killed 46 people in Burma this week, state television has reported.

MRTV said 28 people were killed in Maungdaw, and 18 people were killed in Buthidaung, on the border with Bangladesh.

Rescue efforts are under way and the regional authorities have begun evacuating people, the report added.

Landslides in Bangladesh killed at least 53 people on Tuesday.

Houses damaged

Burmese officials said 34cm (13.5in) of rain fell in Maungdaw, on the border with Bangladesh, on one day this week.

One resident told the BBC's Burmese service that he had seen 10 houses damaged by a mudslide.

An official told the Reuters news agency that deforestation had contributed to the problem.

At least 140,000 people were killed in Burma in 2008 when a cyclone hit the south of the country.