KUALA TERENGGANU • Malaysia's east coast monsoon floods have claimed a second life, as more than 10,000 people from Terengganu and Kelantan are forced to evacuate to relief centres.

Student Zulfaiz Zukarmi, 17, fell into the Besut river in Terengganu and his body was found at 5pm on Tuesday.

Earlier in the day, Khalid Al-Walid Juzaiman, 12, fell into an irrigation canal in Marang, Terengganu, while playing nearby, and died.

More relief centres have been opened inTerengganu, following a rise in the number of flood victims: from 2,201 at midnight on Tuesday to 2,432 at 8am yesterday.

With the opening of another 15 relief centres, the total stands at 64.

But no rivers in Terengganu are reported to have reached dangerous levels by Tuesday morning, said the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID).

In Kelantan, where there were scattered thunderstorms on Tuesday night, and the number of flood victims at relief centres exceeded 8,000 by noon yesterday, compared with just over 5,000 on Tuesday night.

The state has opened 99 evacuation centres, said the state government on its online portal on the floods. The water level at Sungai Golok had risen to 10.56m at 8am yesterday, far above its danger level of 9m, the DID said.

Fire and Rescue Department director-general Wan Mohd Nor Ibrahim said on Tuesday that 522 firemen are on duty in Kelantan and Terengganu, with 37 four-wheel-drive vehicles, 18 lorries and 53 boats at their disposal.

He said personnel from other states are on standby to help the two states. "We will bring in more personnel from other states, including Negri Sembilan and Selangor, if the need arises. We are working with the police, Civil Defence Force and Welfare Department in flood relief efforts."

Datuk Wan Mohd Nor also said his department has deployed boats and helicopters to the affected areas for evacuation and to monitor the situation.

BERNAMA, THE STAR/ ASIA NEWS NETWORK