More Evacuations as Flood Inundates Cities in Western Iran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Record rainfall continued to batter Iran on Monday, causing serious flooding in many areas in the western provinces and forcing thousands to leave their homes.
Thousands of people have been urged to leave their homes in the province of Lorestan as a state of emergency has been declared in several cities.
Flooding has reached the provincial capital, Khorramabad, and has inundated the cities of Poldokhtar, Delfan, Dorood and Ma’mulan.
Flood has also damaged the optical fiber cables in the province of Ilam, disconnecting the province’s telecommunications network.
Heavy rainfall over the past days has caused the rivers in western and southwestern Iran to overflow their banks.
Tens of thousands of people in villages have been moved to safer places and makeshift camps.
Iranian police and security officials are advising people to stay home and postpone their New Year travels as extreme weather conditions continue to grip most of the country.
Energy Minister Reza Ardakanian, who is in charge of water resources, said authorities were working round-the-clock to "control floodwaters and to minimize possible damage".
The floods, caused by torrential rain, have affected at least 25 of Iran’s 31 provinces in recent days, with Golestan in the north, Fars in the south, and Lorestan in the west hit the hardest.
More than two dozen people have been killed as a result of the flooding countrywide. The southern city of Shiraz, the capital of Fars province, with 19 deaths that occurred during last wekk’s floods accounts for the highest number of casualties.
