Malaysian floods have claimed their 24th victim, a report said today, as the number of people evacuated to relief centres amid worsening weather across the country rose to 38,000.

Forecasters have raised the alert level for southern Johor state and Pahang in the east of the peninsula to red, its highest.

"Heavy rains are expected to continue until Thursday, especially in Pahang and Johor," a meteorological department spokesperson told AFP .

The latest victim was a 30-year-old disabled man who drowned in a swamp in Pahang, where more than 23,000 flood victims were sheltering in 142 relief centres, state news agency Bernama reported.

In north-eastern Kelantan state, the number of evacuees rose to 10,321 on Tuesday from 8,066 the previous day, it reported.

Meanwhile, the news agency reported evacuations in Johor rose to 4,643 from 3,633 on Monday amid intermittent rain in the country's southernmost state.