MANILA, July 3 (Reuters) - Landslides caused by monsoon rains have buried makeshift houses in a mining area in the southern Philippines, killing two people and leaving dozens missing, local officials said on Thursday.

Ernesto Cazar, a village chief in Sultan Kudarat province on Mindanao island, said about 40 people were missing and some were feared trapped in mines that have been blocked by the landslides, which occurred on Wednesday evening.

"We've only pulled out two bodies but there could be as many as 40 people buried under mud and rain water," Cazar said, adding villagers, using their bare hands, had been helping soldiers dig at the site.

Constancio Paye, director of the local Mines and Geosciences Bureau, said he had sent a team to inspect the small-scale mine operations to determine if it was safe to continue work in the area.

Paye said the landslides occurred within copper and gold mining areas operated by Filipino and South Korean companies.

Across the Philippines, communities are at risk from landslides during the rainy season, which usually starts in May and lasts until October.

Last month, more than 600 people were killed in floods and landslides in the central and southern Philippines in the wake of typhoon Fengshen, which destroyed 10 billion pesos ($221.2 million) worth of crops, livestock and infrastructure.

Disaster officials said the casualties did not include nearly 200 bodies recovered from a sunken ferry. About 600 more are still missing from one of the country's worst maritime disasters.

Only 56 people were known to have survived when MV Princess of the Stars capsized on June 21 off Sibuyan island in the central Philippines during the storm. (Reporting by Manny Mogato; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

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