The unusually heavy rain that has pounded Colombia this year killed 284 people in related accidents, officials said Tuesday, as navy sailors helped evacuate people from a flooded town.

Colombia has suffered the heaviest rain in decades due to the La Nina weather phenomenon, which causes water temperature in the Pacific Ocean to drop. Strong winds and heavy rain struck a large swath of the Americas.

More than two million people have been affected by flooding, overflowing rivers and landslides this year, the Interior Ministry said. Another 62 people have also been reported missing.

North, north-eastern and western Colombia have been hardest-hit, officials said.

On Tuesday, sailors finished evacuating some 2,000 people from the town of Soplaviento, in the northern Colombian department of Bolivar.

In recent weeks, overflowing rivers forced entire towns to empty, as in the case of the eastern town of Gramalote, in the North Santander department. Residents were forced to flee when the rain produced sinkholes large enough to swallow up whole buildings.

The British charity Oxfam said it is increasing its aid to Colombia, and is calling for increased donations.

"These are the worst floods to hit Colombia in 60 years. They are destroying thousands of homes and crops, roads and public buildings in areas of the country that were already desperately poor," said Guillermo Toro, the Oxfam program manager in Colombia.

"There is an urgent need for clean drinking water and toilets to avert a public health catastrophe, as well as basic food items and temporary shelter for those who have lost their homes."