Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated due to the precipitation, which affected the capital's Beijing suburbs the hardest.
31 of the 44 who have been confirmed dead are reported to have died at a nursing home in Taishitun in the capital's northeastern part, says Xia Linmao who represents Beijing's authorities.
Our ability to predict and warn of extreme weather is insufficient, he says and promises that "profound lessons" will be drawn from the disaster.
