Vehicles Trapped in Mud from Flooding in Iran; Red Crescent: At Least 3 People Missing

Following flooding in at least three provinces of Iran, local officials reported that three people are missing and several vehicles are trapped in mud. The head of the Red Crescent in Mazandaran province announced on Friday, June 15, that after flooding in areas of this province on the evening of Thursday, June 14, three people have gone missing. Gholamali Fakhari expressed ignorance about the fate of the missing individuals. The governor of Chalous also mentioned that heavy rainfall on the Kandovan road caused flooding in the areas of Dozdab, Darband Restaurant, and Oushan Bridge, stating that the flood swept away several parked vehicles along the road. According to Mohammad Sharifi, at least five vehicles have been recovered from the flood mud. Iranian media also reported flooding in areas of East Azerbaijan and Semnan provinces. According to Mahan News Agency, heavy rains caused flooding in the Charavimagh county of East Azerbaijan province and also in the 'Tash' area of Shahroud county in Semnan province. No information has been released regarding the extent of damages or potential casualties in these areas. Following a yellow weather alert for North Khorasan province and the possibility of heavy rainfall on the evening of June 15, provincial officials announced full readiness of rescue forces. During the flooding in Razavi Khorasan province in May of this year, at least 12 people lost their lives. Flooding in Sistan and Baluchestan province in Esfand 1402 and Farvardin of this year also resulted in the deaths and disappearances of several citizens. Some experts have described the extensive destruction caused by flooding in Khorasan and the city of Mashhad as a 'disaster' and attributed it to urban mismanagement. The Research Center of the Islamic Consultative Assembly reported that about 28% of Iran's area, with a population of approximately 56 million, is at risk of severe flooding, with about 15 million of this population also at high risk of flooding. Experts have previously cited poor water resource management, excessive dam construction, destruction of vegetation cover, and construction in riverbeds and floodplains as reasons for flooding and its devastating impact. Azam Bahrami, an environmental activist on social media platform X, stated that the Islamic Republic lacks 'the slightest foresight' and wrote that the 'conversion of thousands of hectares of agricultural land to residential use', 'disregard for appropriate urban development patterns', and the absence of 'informed urban management' are factors leading to such disasters in Iran.