Some cleanup work has begun, but forecasters warn more rain is on the way.
A cleanup is underway in parts of Malaysia after days of rain-induced flooding forced thousands from their homes and killed at least four people.
Nearly 50,000 people were affected by the floods as of 8am (00:00 GMT) on Monday morning, state news agency Bernama reported.
The worst affected area was Johor, the southern state bordering Singapore.
Photos shared on social media showed belongings and furniture piled up on the side of the road as people began clearing homes, offices and clinics damaged by the flooding.
Police said an elderly couple who drowned are among the dead.
In the city of Yong Peng, one of the hardest hit areas, a family waded through brown water outside their home while their children used inner tubes as floats.
Safiee Hassan, 38, said he and his family managed to save their refrigerator, sofa and some electrical appliances.
“Other things like our bed, mattress, wardrobe are damaged,” he told AFP news agency.
“We used to always prepare for the rainy season in November and December,” Mohd Noor Saad, a 57-year-old resident of the city, told Reuters news agency.
“Every household had a boat, but now with the unpredictable weather, it seems we are not prepared and it has become chaotic.”
Flooding is not uncommon during the annual monsoon season, which usually occurs between November and March, but in recent years Malaysia has endured a series of severe floods, which experts say are the result of overdevelopment, deforestation and the changing climate.
Heavy rain cut off the town of Segamat, also in Johor, in December 2006, while thousands of people in the northeastern states were hit by flooding in December 2014 that inundated the main road connecting the east and west coasts of the country.
The capital Kuala Lumpur, Shah Alam and Klang have also experienced major flooding in the past that killed 27 people in December 2021.
Even as the cleanup begins, Malaysian meteorologists are warning that more rain is likely to fall in the coming days.
