Iran to evacuate more towns, villages as rain worsens floods

Flood-hit Iran is evacuating more towns and villages as forecasts show further rain is expected on Saturday.

Heavy downpours are set to strike the southwestern provinces of the country as officials plan to release water from key river dams that are near capacity.

Women and children are being moved to safer areas while men are asked to stay and assist with relief efforts.

In recent weeks, much of the country has been submerged and the death toll currently stands at 70.

Many residents of Susangerd, with a population of about 50,000, and five other communities in the oil-rich southwestern province of Khuzestan were being moved to safer areas as officials released water from major dams, state TV reported.

“An evacuation order has been issued and we are recommending women and children to leave but we are asking the men and youth to stay and help us build floodwalls so we can keep the water out of these cities,” the provincial governor, Gholamreza Shariati, told state TV.

“The inflow into the Karkheh river dam has been high ... and officials have had to release more water as the dam was approaching its full capacity,” Shariati said, adding the flooding was the worst in 70 years.

Rains were expected to end in Khuzestan by Monday, state TV said.

Around 70 villages in the province have already been evacuated over the past week.

The region is rich in oil and energy companies placed in the area have been assisting with the flood relief by using pumps to remove water.

Extremely heavy rain began on March 19, in total affecting about 1,900 cities, towns, and villages. Many thousands of roads, bridges, and buildings have been destroyed.

So far, 86,000 people are living in emergency shelters, of which about 1,000 were airlifted to safety.

Aid agencies are struggling to cope with the demands and Iran's state budget is under pressure due to US sanctions on energy and banking.

The government has maintained that people, especially farmers, will be compensated for their losses.

The head of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards said the armed forces were "using all their power" to minimize damage.