HANOI, November 2 (RIA Novosti) - The death toll from flooding in northern Vietnam has risen to 49, the government's storm and flood control committee said on Sunday.

Unusually heavy rains lashed the capital and its outskirts on Friday, causing major traffic jams and power cuts. Over 1,000 workers from the capital's drainage company have been manning pumps since early on Saturday in an attempt to remove water from the city's main highways.

According to the committee, at least 18 people were killed by the floods in Hanoi. Many streets in the center and on the outskirts of the Vietnamese capital still remain under water.

Over 10,000 houses and 45,000 hectares of crops have been flooded, causing food prices to rise sharply. Some 82,000 people have also been left without drinking water.