ALGIERS, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Torrential rains and muddy floods have swept through the desert province of Tamanrasset in southern Algeria, leaving at least five killed, APS news agency reported Sunday.

A man who was swept by floods is still missing, APS quoted an official source as saying.

Three men were rescued after their four-wheel-drive vehicles were trapped in muddy floods, it added.

A day earlier, the interior ministry announced that a committee had rushed to Tamanrasset to inspect the damage caused by the natural disaster.

Algeria's desert areas, characterized by high temperatures in the summer which sometimes exceed 50 degrees Celsius, are being hit by heavy rains and muddy floods.