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

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 on Saturday, the officials from Shara'ab district said.

The bride survived the accident. Rescue teams are still searching for the others, officials said.

State media declared 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.