Heavy rains have left at least 22 dead and 14 missing as of Saturday afternoon.

According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, as of 6 p.m. Saturday, 22 people died due to the torrential downpours that have pounded the nation since last Sunday, including 16 in North Gyeongsang Province, four in South Chungcheong Province, one in North Chungcheong Province and one in Sejong City.

Nine people are missing in North Gyeongsang Province, three in North Chungcheong Province, one in the southeastern city of Busan and one in Gyeonggi Province.

The number of casualties surged by 26 from last Sunday and is expected to continue climbing.

The disaster response headquarters said search and rescue efforts are under way in Osong, North Chungcheong Province after a number vehicles became trapped in a flooded underpass. Firefighters initially estimated 19 vehicles to be stuck, but police later concluded that 15 were trapped based on CCTV footage.

Casualties are expected given the difficulties confronting search efforts.

In South Chungcheong Province, firefighters are looking for a person who became buried due to a landslide.

The number of households that have evacuated to temporary shelters in 71 areas in 13 cities and provinces, including North Gyeongsang Province, has climbed from some 27-hundred to more than 47-hundred.

A total of 59 public facilities, 80 private establishments and 26 houses have been damaged due to the heavy rain across the nation.

More than nine-thousand hectares of farmland are underwater and a total of 139 roads have been closed, including 47 in North Chungcheong Province and 26 in North Gyeongsang Province.