Eight people died on Thursday after heavy rain and gushing winds caused by Cyclone Ockhi lashed coastal Tamil Nadu and Kerala, NDTV reported. Ninety fishermen are missing.

While four deaths were reported in Tamil Nadu, four were from Kerala. Two of the eight people died of electrocution. Officials suspect the toll is likely to go up. The strong winds caused by Ockhi uprooted several trees, damaging houses and vehicles, snapped power lines and destroyed several settlements close to the sea.

Schools in at least seven districts in the two states have been asked to remain closed on Friday. Heavy rain and thunderstorms are predicted in south Tamil Nadu, south Kerala, Lakshadweep and some places of Andaman and Nicobar islands over the next 24 hours. Stormy winds can touch 65-75 kmph in south Tamil Nadu and 50-60 kmph in the northern part of the state.

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Six warships and two Coast Guard vessels have been deployed in the area to help with the search and rescue operations. Two teams of the National Disaster Response Force have also been sent to Kanyakumari for rescue and relief operations. Another team of 47 personnel is expected to wait in Kerala’s Kochi.

So far, eight fishermen floating 40 km into the sea, off Trivandrum, have been rescued. Navy ships and helicopters have spotted 24 people stranded at sea, and efforts are under way to rescue them, the Navy spokesperson said on Twitter.

Fishermen have been advised to not go into the sea around south Tamil Nadu, south Kerala coasts and Lakshadweep Islands. Sea conditions are expected to be very rough in the area, the India Meteorological Department has said.

“The cyclone is getting stronger but it is moving away from the Kerala coast,” S Sudevan, a scientist at the India Meteorological Department’s regional centre in Chennai, said on Thursday. The weatherman issued an “orange” alert on Thursday for the cyclonic storm. An orange alert signifies a cyclone warning.