The death toll has risen to two and more than 36,000 people have been driven to relief centres by this evening as the floods in Perlis, Kedah and Kelantan worsened, forcing the closure of roads, rail services, schools and government offices.

NONEKedah is the worst hit of the three states, where the floods have claimed two lives so far and forced the evacuation of 25,088 people as at 5pm as well as washed out the plans of several Hindu families to celebrate Deepavali on Friday.

Up to 11,411 people had moved out of their homes in Perlis and 475 in Kelantan.

In Kedah, Kubang Pasu police chief Supt Sawaludin Hamenudin said the body of a German woman, Erna Fisher, 64, was recovered near her house in Kampung Kerenjis, Kota Giam, in Jitra after she was reported missing at 8.30pm yesterday.

Form One student Mohd Zaki Amani Shaari, 13, drowned yesterday after he slipped and fell into a flooded padi field while fishing with his brother in Kampung Charok Bongor in Padang Terap.

Sawaludin also said that two sisters - Siti Nadia Syukor, 13, and Sharifah Syukor, eight - were feared drowned after a motorcycle they were riding pillion on crashed into an irrigation canal in Kampung Telaga Mas in Pokok Sena today.

The rider, Intan Malik, 14, clung onto a tree branch and was rescued by villagers, he added.

Police said rising waters had forced the closure of a major highway linking the northern part of the country and an airport in Kedah state was closed for a second straight day due to a flooded runway.

Train services and water supplies have also been disrupted by the worst floods in five years.

Fisher, who went missing after falling into floodwaters on Monday, was living in Kedah state with her son and his Malaysian wife.

A spokesman of the National Security Council operations room said the 25,088 evacuees in Kedah were from Kubang Pasu, Padang Terap, Kota Setar and Pokok Sena, and were taking shelter at 94 relief centres

"Even though it is not raining, there is a lot of water rushing down from upstream forcing rivers to spill over and flooding low-lying areas," Kedah public order chief Mah Khye Beng told AFP.

Mah said water supplies to some areas were disrupted and some roads had been submerged.

Perlis and Kelantan states were also affected by the floods.

Perlis Menteri Besar Mohamad Isa Sabu described the floods as "really bad" and said they had caused worse devastation than the big flood of 2005.

Housewife Rindu Rahayu Abdul Rahman said she was terrified to see floodwaters rushing through her house in the state capital Kangar.

"It was like seeing the sea in front of my house. We did not manage to save any belongings except for the television and some small appliances," she was quoted as saying by the Star.

- Agencies