Ayatollah Khamenei Hails Iran’s Public Spirit in Helping Flood Victims
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei praised the Iranian people’s enthusiasm for providing relief aid and the public spirit to mobilize efforts in the wake of the floods that have inundated many cities in northern, western and southwestern Iran.
On Tuesday, Ayatollah Khamenei had a special meeting with senior administrative and military officials to examine the measures and relief operations carried out for the flood-stricken provinces.
“Paying services to the people, collaboration and harmony among different sectors, and enthusiasm to offer relief and the spirit of mobilization among people were really significant in the recent flood that has stricken some provinces,” the Leader said in the meeting.
Ayatollah Khamenei also urged the officials to take the necessary actions, stressing, “All necessary decisions and measures should be taken and followed up strictly until the problems and pains of the flood-stricken people are all removed.”
In the gathering, the executive and military officials reported on the latest situation of the flood-stricken regions and the measures which have been taken for lodging the affected people, helping with the problems of the people, and the decisions taken for compensating for the damage in housing, agriculture, cattle, infrastructures, as well as the process of controlling the situation in the coming days, according to Khamenei.ir.
Ayatollah Khamenei further emphasized that damages could have been prevented, noting, “The damage should have been predicted in advance, and preemptive measure should have been taken.”
Stressing that the psychological aftermaths of such disasters can last long and any plans should take that into account, the Leader said, “Apart from the damages, the issue of the psychological damages due to disasters like flood are long term and profound. Hence, plans should be made with an outlook on the future so that the damages of such disasters can be minimized.”
“Dredging rivers and dams, clearing up river banks, watershed management, and protecting meadows and forests are essential matters and lessons must be learnt from this catastrophe so that in the future, different aspects are taken into account and plans are devising comprehensively for various projects including the construction of dams, roads, railways, and urban development,” Ayatollah Khamenei underlined.
Record spring rainfall that has battered Iran in recent days has caused serious flooding in many areas, mainly the provinces of Golestan, Lorestan, Khuzestan, Fars and Ilam, forcing thousands to leave their homes.
At least 57 people have been killed as a result of the flooding across Iran. The southern city of Shiraz, the capital of Fars province, with 19 deaths that occurred during last week’s floods accounts for the highest number of casualties.