SANAA: At least 27 people died and more than 41 were missing after a wedding party was swept away while driving across a valley flooded by monsoon rains in southern Yemen, local officials said on Saturday.

The victims, mostly women and children, were in three vehicles accompanying the bride to her new home across Wadi Nakhla, a valley between Taiz and Ibb provinces, the officials from Shara'ab district said. The bride survived the accident.

Rescue teams were searching for those missing, the officials said. State media said that eight people had been rescued.

Yemen, situated at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, is prone to flooding during the monsoon season, during which people are often killed.

Flash floods have killed at least 10 other people in Yemen in the past two days and have swept away crops.

One of the poorest countries in the world, Yemen is grappling with an al Qaeda insurgency as it tries to reform its political institutions before elections next year.