Heavy rain has pounded the capital Buenos Aires and the surrounding province, cutting off main roads, submerging fields and causing rivers to burst their banks.

The director of Civil Defense for Buenos Aires province, Fabian Garcia said Sunday in a radio interview that a missing man had been found dead, with three others still unaccounted for.

Garcia said 1,945 people had sought shelter in evacuation centers, and that "a very large number" of other residents had fled their homes to stay with relatives.

A storm that lasted until the early hours of Sunday dumped five times the usual May rainfall on the province, Cindy Fernandez from the National Meteorological Service told AFP.

The national and provincial governments launched emergency operations to dispatch rescue vehicles, as well as food, water and blankets to flood victims.