WHO Sends Medical Aid to Flood-Hit Areas of Iran (+Photos)

The supplies include trauma, health, cholera and non-communicable disease kits and other commodities requested by the Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education.

Extreme rainfall which began on 19 March has led to flooding in 28 out of 31 provinces affecting millions of inhabitants in 253 cities and causing widespread damage to municipal facilities, including health centers and hospitals. Many health facilities in affected areas are either fully or partially damaged, and the risk of water- and vector-borne diseases, including malaria, cholera and other communicable diseases is increasing, also due to the interruption of the water supply.

In 17 of the most severely affected provinces major damage to the health infrastructure has been reported, with 577 health houses, 52 health centers, 201 comprehensive health centers, 70 emergency medical services stations, 24 clinics and 43 hospitals affected.

“Together with the United Nations country team led by the UN Resident Coordinator Ms Ugochi Daniels, WHO will continue to provide full support to the Ministry of Health and Medical Education and the people in Islamic Republic of Iran to address urgent health needs and undertake recovery measures. We call on the international community to make further funding available. We want to express again our deep condolences to all of those who have lost loved ones and will do our best to provide assistance to those in need,” said Christoph Hamelmann, WHO Representative in Islamic Republic of Iran.

Pirhossein Koulivand, Director of the National Emergency Medical Services (EMS) underscored that given the widespread flood damages in most parts of Iran, the EMS has been serving flood victims with all logistical and personnel capabilities, and international assistance like the one from WHO can complement these actions.

“From the first day of the flooding, WHO has led and coordinated the health response of the UN country team in support of the Ministry of Health and Medical Education. A number of health coordination meetings with national and international counterparts have been convened to identify the urgent needs of affected populations,” said Laleh Najfizadeh, Coordinator of the WHO Health Emergency Programme at the WHO country office in Islamic Republic of Iran.

The WHO Health Emergencies Programme is committed to saving lives and reducing suffering during times of crises whether caused by conflict, disease outbreaks or environmental disasters and leads and coordinates the response of all international health partners to contain disease outbreaks and provide effective relief and recovery to people affected.

The following images show relief goods being leaded to Pakistani aircraft and being sent to Iran in coordination with the WHO to the destination of Ahvaz in southwestern Iran for people in flood-hit areas.