At least 17 people, including two children, were killed in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu due to rains that lashed several parts of the region, causing three houses to collapse, local media reports said Monday.

The houses crumpled at Nadur village near Mettupalayalam in Coimbatore district, about 502 km southwest of Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu.

According to officials, they immediately rushed teams of disaster response force, police personnel and firefighters to the spot to carry out rescue operations.

The local government has announced compensation of 400,000 rupees (about 5,500 U.S. dollars) for the victims' families.