Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 5
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Rescue operations in 28 snow-bound provinces of Iran continue, spokesman of the Iranian Red Crescent Society, Hossein Derakhshan said, Iran's ILNA news agency reported on Feb. 5.
Derakhshan went on to say that only three provinces in Iran have not faced problems from the snowfall.
Two people have died in Gilan province, due to slipping and falling accidents, he added.
On Feb. 4, Tabnak news portal reported that four people died in Mazandaran province because heavy snowfall prevented people who needed medical attention from reaching the hospital in time.
The Red Crescent society's rescue efforts are mainly focused in Gilan, Mazandaran, Hamedan, East Azerbaijan, Markazi and Yazd provinces, Derakhshan said, adding that in some regions houses have been damaged by 80 percent, due to heavy snowfall.
The society has supplied 12 tons of consignment relief to the surrounded regions by helicopter, he remarked. About 2900 members of the Red Crescent society have participated in the rescue operations, Derakhshan said.
Iranian army, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Special units of the police also have joined rescue operations in the snow-bound northern- provinces of Gilan and Mazandaran.
On Feb. 4, deputy Commander of the Iranian Armed Forces Mohammad Mahmoudi said that the army's personnel carriers have been dispatched to Gilan to rescue people who were trapped by the snow.
Heavy snowfall has closed roads in several villages in Gilan Province, he added.
Schools in Iranian capital city of Tehran and the country's 20 provinces including Ardabil, Markazi, North Khorasan, Hamedan, Qom, Gilan, Mazandaran, East Azerbaijan, West Azerbaijan and Esfahan have been postponed due to heavy snowfall.
Since the weather in these provinces is not expected to change before later this week, classes at schools may be postponed for a few days.