at least 21 dead in floods in the south

At least 21 people died and six are missing after heavy rains in Iran caused flooding in the southern province of Fars, the official Irna news agency reported on Saturday. “Twenty-one people were killed and two are still missing” in the floods that affected several towns in and around Estehban region in the southern province of Fars, a provincial Red Crescent official was quoted by state television as saying.

Heavy rains fell late Friday afternoon in the towns of Ij and Roodbal, causing flooding, said the governor of Estehban province, quoted by the Irna agency, adding that “55 rescue teams had arrived on the scene to participate in the search operations”. “Many locals and visitors had gone to the river’s edge when they were trapped by the rising waters”he added.

In January, floods had already hit this region and eight people had died. Largely arid, Iran has suffered from repeated droughts over the past decade, but also from regular flooding due to torrential rains. In 2019, heavy rains in the South killed at least 76 people and caused damage estimated at more than two billion dollars. Climate change is amplifying drought episodes, threatening food security, experts say.