Bangkok, Jan 9 (IANS): At least 21 persons have died and about 960,000 have been displaced in Thailand due to torrential rains and floods, an official said on Monday.

Heavy downpours since January 1 have damaged over 200 roads and 59 bridges and devastated more than 330,000 houses in southern Thailand, Xinhua news agency reported citing Director General of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department, Chatchai Promlert.

The affected provinces are either on the Gulf of Thailand coast or on the shores of the Andaman Sea, including Thailand's world-famous tourist spots of Phuket and Krabi.

Huge water pumps have been installed along inundated waterways to carry excessive water out to the sea while naval boats and helicopters were being used in the evacuation of stranded villagers.

The Meteorological Department forecast that two-to-three-metre-high tides will remain in the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea until Tuesday.