BANGKOK, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- Floods in southern Thailand have killed 13 people and injured five others since Dec. 14, the director general of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department said on Friday.

Eight provinces had been hit hard by heavy rain-triggered floods, including Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phattalung, Songkhla, Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat and Trang, Chatchai Promlert was quoted by the Nation newspaper as saying.

Nakhon Si Thammarat and Surat Thani had seen the situation return to normal while the remaining six provinces were still coping with inundation, Deputy Interior Minister Suthee Makboon said.

In Yala alone, more than 50,000 residents have been affected by flooding, with three people reportedly drowned and two others injured. Thousands have been evacuated.

The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation had worked with the military and other agencies to help those affected, Chatchai said.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha visited flood victims in Tak Bai district of Narathiwat on Friday.