Death toll in Iran flash floods rises to 56, Tehran worst hit

By Syed Zafar Mehdi

TEHRAN, Iran (AA) - The death toll in devastating flash floods that have wreaked havoc across Iran in the past few days has reached 56, according to officials, with a weather alert still in place.

Mehdi Valipour, the head of emergency operations at Iran's Red Crescent Society, told local media on Saturday that the fatalities mounted with search operations gaining momentum.

He said the floods triggered by heavy downpours over the past week affected 20 of the country's 31 provinces, including hundreds of cities, towns, and villages, while also damaging major roads and highways.

While reports about floods started coming early last week from southwestern Fars and southeastern Sistan Baluchestan provinces, landslides and mudslides triggered by heavy rainfall in the mountainous Imamzadeh Davood locality in northwestern Tehran led to multiple casualties on Thursday.

It was followed on Friday by Firuzkooh, a popular resort on the foothills of the Alborz Mountains in northeastern Tehran, making the capital the worst-affected province.

Valipour said 18 deaths have been reported from Imamzadeh Davood and 14 from Firuzkooh so far, with at least 28 people still reported missing across the country.

Tehran Governor Mohsen Mansuri in separate remarks on Saturday said at least 11 people have been confirmed dead in Firuzkooh, with four others missing.

Both Imamzadeh Davood and Firuzkooh are popular attractions among trekkers and hikers, with the former also home to a popular shrine that has incurred heavy damage in the latest floods.

The adjoining cities and counties of Tehran, including Damavand and Rudehen, have also been severely affected by floods, forcing thousands of people to vacate their homes.

A representative of Damavand and Firuzkooh counties in the parliament said on Saturday that it was impossible to estimate an exact number of casualties or missing people in the twin counties, saying the casualty toll there could be higher than in Tehran.

He also referred to extensive damage caused to orchards, incurring farmers' huge losses.

In the central Yazd province, around 430 miles southeast of Tehran, at least six people have died so far and 10 others have been injured in flood-related incidents, according to local emergency officials.

A representative of the province, known for its rich history and heritage, told the parliament on Saturday that the catastrophic floods had inflicted damage on many historical mud structures in the province.

In the southeastern Kerman province, at least three deaths have so far resulted from floods, according to the provincial disaster management officials, who have also reported extensive damage to electricity, water, and telecom infrastructure, and the evacuation of people in at least 34 villages.

Iran, a country that has seen long spells of drought, has been occasionally hit by devastating floods, mostly in summers. Experts attribute it to climate change.

In the last few weeks, the southern Fars province of Iran was battered by flash floods, which led to the killing of at least 22 people. The province had previously been hit by floods in 2019 when at least 76 people were reported dead.

Meteorologists have predicted more rainfall in the coming days in different Iranian cities, with authorities urging people to avoid traveling to flood-prone areas.