Tehran, Iran - Flash flooding in southern and parts of western Iran has left at least 19 people dead and more than 100 injured as the government urged people to cancel trips and warned of more rains, according to Fars news agency.

The Ministry of Interior advised Iranians on Monday evening to cancel any trips and take the warnings seriously with the Disaster Management Organisation sending nationwide text messages to warn people about taking routes that are prone to flooding, including those in mountains and river banks.

The disaster comes during Iranian New Year, Nowruz, holidays when many Iranians travel in the country.

"There were only two sets of 15-minute heavy rainfalls that caused the flood to spread through the city," a resident of Shiraz, the worst-affected city, told Al Jazeera.

"The number of casualties would have been less, had people avoided staying there or leaving as soon as they saw the flood coming."

The country's Meteorological Organisation put 12 provinces on high alert until Wednesday, predicting a higher chance of flood due to heavy rains across the country from western parts on Monday and Tuesday to eastern and northeastern regions later on.

Flights to and from Tehran's Mehrabad International Airport have been either cancelled or delayed due to bad weather. At least 22 routes were blocked due mostly to the climatic conditions, local news agencies reported.

Fars news agency reported that President Hassan Rouhani cut short a trip to Qeshm Island due to the flooding disaster.

In a public statement, Rouhani offered condolences to the victims while thanking rescue crews, the armed forces and the police for rescue operations.

Opposition and some media outlets have criticised Rouhani over the handling of the flood disaster.

Flooding also killed one person in Sar-Pol Zahab county in the western Kermanshah Province, where some residents still live in temporary cabins. They are trying to restore or re-build houses and apartments damaged by a strong earthquake that took hundreds of lives last year.

The lives of those who live close to the banks of the Arvand river, however, are more at risk amid the possibility of an overflow.

"Because many residents are not willing to abandon the houses that are being restored, they refuse to leave the area to go to a safer place," Farzad Nasimipour, a resident of Sar-Pol Zahab, told Al Jazeera.

The 32-year-old political science graduate said there is a risk of more casualties in the coming days if there is no immediate action to evacuate residents from places at a higher risk of floods.

In a horrifying video being shared on social media, which is believed to be recorded from a window of a bus, strongly flowing water is seen washing away cars as well as pedestrians unable to hold on to a concrete power pole.

Other pictures, too, show numerous damaged cars piled up by the flood at the northern entrance of Shiraz city.

In the northern Mazandaran Province, dozens of bridges have been destroyed, while in other parts hundreds of villages were submerged under flood water.

The northern floods started more than a week ago, hitting mostly areas in Golestan Province southeast of the Caspian Sea.

Its governor was recently fired over his refusal to cut short a trip abroad as disaster decimated the region.

The flooding is likely to impact tourism; more Iranians were expected to travel inside the country after the devaluation of the Iranian rial made foreign trips expensive.

The rial has lost significantly because of the new round of US sanctions imposed by US President Donald Trump, who unilaterally pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal signed in 2015.</s>Vehicles are seen piled up on a street after a flash flood in the southern city of Shiraz, Iran, March 25, 2019. AP

Tehran, March -- The death toll from major floods swamping much of Iran has risen to 21, emergency services said Tuesday, as authorities sent safety warnings to mobile telephones across the country. Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a message of condolence urging officials to speed up relief efforts and compensation for victims of the floods, which the authorities described as unprecedented.

The disaster, which the energy minister blamed on climate change, struck in the middle of Iranian New Year holidays, with many relief workers on vacation.

Nineteen people were killed and 98 injured in the southern city of Shiraz, while one person died in the western province of Kermanshah and another in Lorestan, also in the west, rescue services said.

At least 110 people were reported wounded, according to the health ministry.

Dramatic video posted to social media showed fast-moving water dragging piles of vehicles down streets that had become rivers. Some of the vehicles being swept away still had people clinging to them or trying to escape. One video, posted on Monday, showed several people struggling to cling to a lamp pole on a flooded roadway before losing their grip and being pulled away by the water.

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With 20 of Iran's 31 provinces experiencing floods or facing an imminent threat, the country's National Crisis Management Committee was activated at the cabinet level.

Iran's meteorological service has warned of more heavy showers until Wednesday, and flood warnings have gone out for central provinces such as Isfahan and the capital Tehran.

Overnight the crisis management committee sent out multiple text messages to all mobile telephones in Iran urging people to be cautious and await instructions from official sources.

"Remain calm when facing possible dangers... do not honk your car horns in mountainous regions as it might cause avalanches," one of the messages read.

"Do not setup tents near rivers or mountainous areas... and most importantly do not cross bridges when floods are running underneath," read another one.

The floods followed extreme rainfall which at times was equivalent to half of the average annual levels within 24 hours.

It follows major floods on March 19 in the northeastern provinces of Golestan and Mazandaran, for which no official casualty toll has been given.

Such a widespread flood threat is unprecedented in arid Iran, which until 2018 was dealing with decades of drought.

"Climate change is forcing itself on our country," said Energy Minister Reza Ardekanian, who is in charge of dams and water supply.

"These unprecedented floods in our country are because of climate change worldwide," he said on Monday, quoted by the Tasnim news agency.</s>Tehran, Iran – More than 100 injured and 19 dead in the flash flooding that occurred in Tehran on Monday, 25 March. The Ministry of Interior warned the civilians to not take any trips and be cautious of the rains that may follow.

The Disaster Management Organisation had sent a nationwide message of attentiveness when picking routes near mountain and river banks.

The Mehrabad International Airport had cancelled or delayed all its flight in and out of Iran due to bad weather. Iran’s Meteorological Organisation on Wednesday predicted a flood due to heavy rain, thus informed twelve provinces to be on high alert.

A resident of Shiraz, impacted by the flood claimed, ‘that the flood comes in two sets of 15-minute heavy rainfalls, which cause the flood. Damage could have been controlled if people had evacuated the area as soon as they found out about the flood.’

Nowruz also known as the Iranian New Year is when the flood occurs, it is a holiday when many Iranians travel within the country.

President of Iran, Hassan Rouhani who was traveling to Qeshm Island had shortened his trip to offer his condolences to the flood victims while showing appreciation to the armed forces and the police for rescue operations.

Evacuations are being conducted in various areas of Iran as there is still a possibility of an overflow which keeps the citizens still at risk. The flood is likely to also impact tourism, as many bridges and villages have been destroyed.</s>Flood disaster in Iran reached a new level on Monday as Flash floods inundated the historic city of Shiraz in south-central part of the country, killing at least 18 people.Shiraz is the capital city of Fars Province. The Governor of Fars urged residents to stay in their homes until further notice. He told ISNA that flash floods started from hills around the city and in a matter of minutes swept parts of Shiraz.Enayatollah Rahimi also told Mehr news agency that heavy rains were expected and the local government had made preparations days in advance, but many did not heed the warnings and the speed of the flood also caught officials by surprise.The flood also inundated the historic Vakil Bazaar.A spokesman of the fire department in Shiraz said that water levels might still increase and flood many residential and commercial buildings., in what seems to be a break in the country's drought, which had reduced water supplies to a minimum.The floods have hit Iran at a time when schools and many offices are closed due to the Nowruz New Year holidays. But at the same time, many people are traveling on roads that can be swept away by water.Latest reports raised the alarm about the Tehran-Qom highway, as strong rainstorms hit the area. A dam in the region was inundated by floods and water surpassed the dam.</s>Tehran - The death toll from major floods swamping much of Iran has risen to 21, emergency services said Tuesday, as authorities sent safety warnings to mobile telephones across the country.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a message of condolence urging officials to speed up relief efforts and compensation for victims of the floods, which the authorities described as unprecedented.

The disaster, which the energy minister blamed on climate change, struck in the middle of Iranian New Year holidays, with many relief workers on vacation.

Nineteen people were killed and 98 injured in the southern city of Shiraz, while one person died in the western province of Kermanshah and another in Lorestan, also in the west, rescue services said.

With 20 of Iran's 31 provinces experiencing floods or facing an imminent threat, the country's National Crisis Management Committee was activated at the cabinet level.

Iran's meteorological service has warned of more heavy showers until Wednesday, and flood warnings have gone out for central provinces such as Isfahan and the capital Tehran.

Overnight the crisis management committee sent out multiple text messages to all mobile telephones in Iran urging people to be cautious and await instructions from official sources.

"Remain calm when facing possible dangers... do not honk your car horns in mountainous regions as it might cause avalanches," one of the messages read.

"Do not setup tents near rivers or mountainous areas... and most importantly do not cross bridges when floods are running underneath," read another one.

The floods followed extreme rainfall which at times was equivalent to half of the average annual levels within 24 hours.

It follows major floods on March 19 in the northeastern provinces of Golestan and Mazandaran, for which no official casualty toll has been given.

Such a widespread flood threat is unprecedented in arid Iran, which until 2018 was dealing with decades of drought.

"Climate change is forcing itself on our country," said Energy Minister Reza Ardekanian, who is in charge of dams and water supply.

"These unprecedented floods in our country are because of climate change worldwide," he said on Monday, quoted by the Tasnim news agency.</s>The death toll from major floods swamping much of Iran has risen to 21, emergency services said on Tuesday, as authorities sent safety warnings to mobile phones across the country.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a message of condolence urging officials to speed up relief efforts and compensation for victims of the floods, which the authorities described as unprecedented.

The disaster, which the energy minister blamed on climate change, struck in the middle of Iranian New Year holidays, with many relief workers on vacation.

Nineteen people were killed and 98 injured in the southern city of Shiraz, while one person died in the western province of Kermanshah and another in Lorestan, also in the west, rescue services said.

At least 110 people were reported wounded, according to the health ministry.

With 20 of Iran’s 31 provinces experiencing floods or facing an imminent threat, the country’s National Crisis Management Committee was activated at the cabinet level.

Iran’s meteorological service has warned of more heavy showers until Wednesday, and flood warnings have gone out for central provinces such as Isfahan and the capital Tehran.

Overnight the crisis management committee sent out multiple text messages to all mobile telephones in Iran urging people to be cautious and await instructions from official sources.

“Remain calm when facing possible dangers... do not honk your car horns in mountainous regions as it might cause avalanches,” one of the messages read.

“Do not set up tents near rivers or mountainous areas... and most importantly do not cross bridges when floods are running underneath,” read another one.

The floods followed extreme rainfall which at times was equivalent to half of the average annual levels within 24 hours.</s>Iranian President Hassan Rohani has promised compensation to all those affected by flash floods, as the nationwide death toll from what he called an "unprecedented" natural disaster reached 26.

 

 Rohani and several cabinet ministers traveled to the northern province of Golestan on March 27 to inspected damage caused by the floods triggered by heavy rain.

 

 Officials said that 26 people had been confirmed dead and hundreds suffered injuries in the floods, according to the semiofficial Tasnim news agency.

 

 Most of the deaths were reported in Shiraz, the capital of the southern Fars Province, where 18 people died.

 

 Tasnim quoted Rohani as saying that the floods affected 25 of Iran's 31 provinces and that the scale of the disaster had overwhelmed emergency services in some areas.

 

 "We will rebuild Golestan just as it was before, and we will stand by your side," the president said.

 

 Iran's hard-liners have accused Rohani's government of not doing enough to tackle the disaster.

 

 Golestan Province's governor, who was abroad when the disaster hit, was dismissed on March 23 amid public outrage over his absence from work.

 

 Emergency services have been hampered by last week's celebrations marking Norouz, the pre-Islamic Persian new year, with many employees on vacation.

Based on reporting by Reuters and Tasmin</s>In his message released on Tue., Larijani condoled with the bereaved families of victims of fatal flood erupted in Shiraz, Fars province.

Devastating floods incurred huge damages in various provinces this year putting the country's local official on full alert to help people in those provinces.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani extended condolences over death of Iranian people in the flash floods and urged officials to double their efforts to decrease problems of the flood-stricken areas and people.

Referring to the fact that necessary decisions will be taken to compensate losses to flood-hit people in Wednesday government committee meeting, President Hassan Rouhani ordered Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli to investigate the reason behind Shiraz incident and to present report.

President also called on all responsible organizations to take their utmost efforts to alleviate problems facing flood-stricken people.</s>In the first meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers held in the current Iranian calendar year in 1398 (started March 21, 2019), he pointed to the recent flash floods overshadowing most provinces of the country and thanked people in the nationwide who rushed for helping flood-stricken people.

Although some provinces across the country faced flash floods in the past years, “we witnessed that about 25 out of 31 provinces in the country were involved in incidence of flood in the current year (started Mar. 21) which is unprecedented, Rouhani added.

He called on all government officials to make their utmost efforts in line with alleviating problems facing people in flood-stricken areas.

Incidence of flash flood in some provinces of the country especially in Shiraz, Fars province was ‘tragic’, he said, adding, “this incident showed that people were the first group that rushed to render quality relief and rescue services in flood-hit areas.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, Rouhani emphasized on disseminating information timely and stated, “Iranian Meteorological Organization (IMO) should play a key and leading role in this respect.”

He pointed to dredging rivers, providing a comprehensive plan for protecting cities prone to risk, guiding water towards marshlands and main rivers, constructing dams and revising in design of roads and railways and said that all these measures should be taken into serious consideration in order to turn threat into opportunity.

He also urged responsible officials and organizations to compensate the damages incurred to flood-hit people for alleviating agony and sorrow of people.

Rouhani obliged all administrative and executive organizations, Armed forces and responsible authorities to use all their facilities available to flood-hit people.</s>President Hassan Rouhani travelled to flood-hit zones of Iran for the first time Wednesday after nine days of heavy rains that have inundated most of the country and killed 43 people.

The authorities have been struggling to cope with flooding after extreme rainfall which at times has been equivalent to half of the average annual levels within 24 hours.

The disaster, which one government minister blamed on climate change, struck in the middle of Iranian New Year break, with many relief workers on leave and millions of holidaymakers on the roads.

"When suddenly 25 out of 31, and on some days all provinces are struck (by flooding), this may be an unprecedented phenomenon," Rouhani said in Tehran, quoted by the government's website.

Rouhani then flew to the northeastern province of Golestan, one of the areas where the floods first struck on March 19 and have since killed at least 10 people, according to the latest official figures.

Speaking at a crisis meeting in Golestan aired live on state television, Rouhani responded to criticsm he was slow to visit the disaster-hit zone.

"I had planned to come in the first days, but ultimately due to considerations it was decided the first vice-president would travel here," he said.

The deluge spread rapidly from the north to the west and south of the country on March 25 before hitting the center of Iran as the weather front moved eastwards.

"In some regions, rainfall within 24 hours equalled that of the prior 10 months," said Mahmoodreza Peiravi, secretary general of Iran's Red Crescent Society.

"If you take the number and ferocity of the floods into account, the death toll was thankfully not that high," he said, while warning it could rise in coming days.

"The floods struck during the holidays and many vacationers on road trips were affected by it," Peiravi told AFP.

"It is possible that some vacationers might have been carried off by the floods and no one is yet aware of it," he warned.

A day of mourning has been declared for Thursday in the southern city of Shiraz, the worst-hit area where the flooding claimed the lives of 19 people and injured more than 100.

The latest toll included six people who drowned when a boat full of rescuers and victims overturned in the northeastern Gomishan region in Golestan province.

"Another body has been found but we have not yet recovered it," the area's emergency services head Alireza Kamalgharibi said, adding that search and rescue operations would continue as it was unclear how many people had been on board the boat.

Another four people were killed in the western provinces of Kogiluyeh-Va-Boyerahmad and Lorestan, said Morteza Salimi, head of the Iranian Red Crescent's search and rescue organization.

One death was also reported in each of Khuzestan, Kermanshah and Semnan provinces.

"More than 43,000 people were rescued and nearly 27,000 were provided with emergency accommodation," Salimi said, quoted by Tasnim news agency, adding rescue operations had been carried out in 30 provinces.

Officials estimate the flooding caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to homes, farms and infrastructure.

The skies have mostly cleared up for now but Iran's meteorological service has warned of more heavy showers from Saturday.

Such a widespread flood threat is unprecedented in arid Iran, which until 2018 was dealing with decades of drought.

"Climate change is forcing itself on our country," Energy Minister Reza Ardekanian, who is in charge of dams and water supply, said on Monday.

"These unprecedented floods in our country are because of climate change worldwide," he added.
The death toll from a flash flood in Iran rises to 21.