"We have lots of landslides, and some bridges have collapsed," said Benedicto Giron of the civil-protection agency in Guatemala, where at least 20 communities were completely isolated with rescuers were unable to reach them.

"The situation is very delicate. There are many houses damaged and roads covered with landslides," Guatemalan President Oscar Berger said.

Guatemala said it confirmed 79 deaths, and that the toll would surely rise higher. There were at least 62 dead in El Salvador, 10 in both Nicaragua and Mexico and three in Honduras.

The flooding came from storms sparked by Hurricane Stan, which smashed into Mexico from the Atlantic earlier this week.

Stan was only briefly a hurricane and its winds caused moderate damage but several days of rains swelled normally slow rivers into thundering, brown torrents that swept away bridges, houses, roads and trees across the region.

Thousands of homes were destroyed.

RELENTLESS DOWNPOURS

Troops tried to reach flooded areas with drinking water, food and medical kits but relentless downpours made the task more difficult.

"It is the weather that is preventing us from doing a more-effective job at this moment," Mexican President Vicente Fox said. Meteorologists said the rains would continue all week.

The tragedy brought back memories of Hurricane Mitch, which killed some 10,000 people in Central America in 1998, mainly in Honduras and Nicaragua, with mudslides and flooding.

Stan felled trees and flooded sugar cane fields in the Mexican state of Veracruz but left its coffee crop intact.

Dazed peasant farmers clad in makeshift rain gear made from plastic sheets dragged drenched furniture from their flooded homes in remote Guatemalan villages.

Around 2,500 homes were destroyed in Mexico's bustling southern city of Tapachula, on the border with Guatemala. Entire neighborhoods were deep in water and families spent the night on roofs, waiting to be rescued.

Juan Perez, a 25-year-old security guard, stood on the remains of the city's main bridge and looked over at his ravaged neighborhood.

"We are waiting for the river drop so we can cross over. My father doesn't know where I am. There is no way to communicate and all the bridges have fallen down."

Army helicopters hovered above flooded areas, hoisting babies, young children and elderly people to safety.

Entire families were missing after a sea of mud, trees and rocks descended on the hill town of Tecpan, west of the capital Guatemala City, destroying more than 30 flimsy homes.

Two dead children were found and villagers were too scared of more landslides to dig for other victims. Clothing, trees and the roofs of houses were strewn around.

Greenpeace said the flooding in Mexico was made worse by deforestation, as water rushed down bare hillsides. It urged the region's governments to do a better job of conserving forests and mangroves.