The World Food Program says it is sending a first shipment of emergency food aid to flood-hit areas of North Korea, where torrential rain has killed nearly 120 people and has left tens of thousands of families without clean water and adequate supplies of food.

After sending a survey team to North Korea earlier this week, the U.N. body said Friday that flooding caused considerable damage to corn, soybean and rice fields.

The WFP said the assistance will provide victims with an initial ration of 400 grams of corn a day for 14 days. It also stressed that tens of thousands of families urgently need clean drinking water to prevent disease.

The North's official Korean Central News Agency has reported a total of 119 deaths in recent weeks, with more than 60,000 people made homeless and around 45,000 hectares of farmland submerged or washed away.