NEW DELHI: Thousands of people have taken refuge in relief camps as torrential monsoon rains flooded parts of southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, killing at least 12 people this week.

Schools in Chennai, the state capital, and other coastal towns have been closed with the weather office warning of intermittent heavy rains this weekend.

A government statement Saturday says over 10,000 people were living in 105 state-run relief camps as rains flooded low-lying areas in Chennai and its suburbs on Thursday and Friday. The northeast monsoon season in the region set in on Oct. 27 and is expected to last until early December.

Chennai received over 30 centimeters (11 inches) of rain in the past three days, raising fears of a repeat of the 2015 deluge in which 150 people died.