According to reports, a devastating flood has caused extensive damage in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan province. Footage and images from this impoverished region depict thousands of people stranded in the cold without shelter.
The flood has impacted nearly 2000 villages and several cities, rendering access to over two-thirds of them impossible. An official from the government acknowledged that initial assessments revealed 500 homes completely destroyed. Despite a week passing since the flooding began, the people of Sistan and Baluchistan remain surrounded by rising waters.
State-run website Ensaf News reported that the flood has caused widespread destruction in Sistan and Baluchistan, with some villages still inundated.
A village leader from the Dashtiari region of Chabahar city remarked that the government only began acknowledging the flood after the recent elections, leaving affected communities feeling neglected.
The situation in Dashtiari and Talang, as reported by Eghtesad Online, is dire, with residents, particularly women and children, suffering mental distress. Locals feel abandoned, as aid has been slow to arrive, and government assistance is lacking.
A flood survivor recounted the harrowing experience of losing seven villagers in Talang and described the desperate measures taken by people to seek refuge from the cold floodwaters.
Images shared on social media depict the only aid reaching flood-affected regions originating from various provinces, with no substantial assistance from the government. Moreover, reports indicate that the regime is hindering public efforts to provide aid to the affected populace.
The head of the Islamic Council of Bahuklat district recounted a distressing incident where a father and son spent two days and nights atop a tree in a flooded river. Despite pleas for help, no organization dispatched a helicopter to rescue them.
According to Fararu, at least three fatalities have been reported due to the recent flooding.
The state-run media, in a report on Sunday, admitted that ‘Kash’, ‘Sib and Suran’, ‘Fanuj’, ‘Iranshahr’, ‘Mirjaveh’, ‘Nikshahr’, ‘Delgan’, ‘Chabahar’, ‘Saravan’, ‘Zahedan’, ‘Nimruz’, ‘Sarbaz’, ‘Konarak’, ‘Meherstan’, and ‘Dashtiari’ were damaged by this flood. Additionally, approximately 400,000 people have been affected.
Moinuddin Saeedi, the parliamentary representative for Chabahar, described the situation as critical, likening the recent rains to the severity of Cyclone Gonu. He criticized the lack of crisis management infrastructure and noted the significant disruption to essential services.
Despite local reports confirming the dire conditions, the province’s crisis management director denied any blockages on communication routes. However, reports from Nikshahr city contradict this, citing the destruction of bridges, resulting in the isolation of over 200 villages from the city center.
