The heaviest rains to hit Chile in 80 years have left at least seven people dead and many more missing.

The extreme weather has caused widespread destruction and flooding in the country’s north.

Towns have been overwhelmed and roads cut off.

“Sadly, we lost everything. There is nothing to recover. So now we have to wait and see what there is, although you can see how little there is to rescue. We have to wait for the mud to go down,” said one resident in the small coastal city of Chanaral, in the Atacama region.

In Copiapo, around 800 kilometres north of Santiago, streets now resemble rivers, with people forced to wade through muddy water to get around.

The city has been partly cut off and the airport closed to commercial flights.

Military helicopters have been flying in supplies to the worst affected areas as well evacuating people from some villages.

The worst of the weather appears to be over, but it will take a long time before life gets back to normal.