a day ago
Heatwave leads to widespread water, power shortages in Iran
TEHRAN, July 21 (Xinhua) -- Unrelenting high temperatures have triggered water and electricity shortages across large parts of Iran, with several cities issuing yellow weather alerts, Iranian media reported on Monday.
In Tehran province, thermometers climbed as high as 45 degrees Celsius on Sunday.
Mohammad Asgari, a senior expert at the Iranian Meteorological Organization, said that the average domestic temperature has been approximately 1.2 degrees Celsius above normal since the start of summer.
Asgari warned that eight provinces will continue to experience abnormal heat in the coming days, the Mehr news agency reported.
The official IRNA news agency reported that President Masoud Pezeshkian highlighted Tehran's acute water crisis during a meeting with the Ministry of Interior, warning of severe shortages and critically low reserves.
The Iranian president criticized current resource management practices as "ineffective" and called for greater public engagement and coordination to address the emergency.
To conserve energy and water, Tehran province would observe a public holiday on Wednesday.
In Semnan Province, from Tuesday to Wednesday, all administrative offices, executive agencies, and banks will operate on reduced hours, from 6 a.m. to 11 a.m., to cut consumption and cope with forecasted temperature rises of two to four degrees Celsius, according to Mehr news agency.
Since early summer, the capital city of Tehran has endured scheduled rolling power and water outages as part of nationwide conservation measures.
