Flash floods, lightning kill six in 10 Iranian provinces: IRCS
Six people have been killed as a consequence of recent flash floods and lightning strike in 10 Iranian provinces and two are missing, said the head of the Relief and Rescue Organization of the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS)
Presenting a report on the rescue operations in the flood-hit areas on Sunday, Mehdi Valipour added over the past four days, 30 counties in 10 provinces were hit by flash floods, IRNA reported.
He listed the provinces as East Azarbaijan and West Azarbaijan (both in northwestern Iran), Alborz (northern Iran), Fars (southern Iran), Sistan and Baluchestan (southeastern Iran), Semnan and Mazandaran (both in northern Iran), Hormuzgan (southern Iran) and Kurdestan (northwestern Iran).
The spokesman added that of the victims, five were killed in floods and one was hit by lightning, while two people are missing in Baft county in Kerman Province.
Valipour said 248 IRCS rescue workers in 62 teams took part in the rescue and relief operations over the past four days.
On Saturday, the spokesman of the country’s National Disaster Management Organization (NDMO) Ali Bakhtiari said following a warning by Iran Meteorological Organization on Wednesday about the possibility of heavy monsoon rainfalls in 10 provinces, the NDMO and other service and rescue organizations were placed on a state of alert.
Bakhtiari regretted that the flash floods have caused problems in some parts of the country over the past few days and said rainfall and hailstorm caused 85 percent damage to 550 hectares of gardens and 450 hectares of farmlands in West Azarbaijan Province.