Rescue Workers Save 800 From Blizzard, Floods  

The Iranian Red Crescent Society rescued 800 people over the past five days as heavy snow and rainfall hit 12 provinces across the nation.
“Some 800 were saved and two pregnant women were transferred to medical centers,” head of the IRCS’ Relief and Rescue Organization, Mahdi Valipour, was quoted as saying by IRNA. 
Nearly 75 days into autumn, freezing temperatures finally set in this week from northwestern provinces of West Azarbaijan to the eastern Khorasan Razavi and the southern Bushehr, disrupting everyday life in as many as 25 provinces. 
According to Valipour, 40 teams of 134 members carried out search and rescue operations in the 12 provinces worst hit by the extreme weather conditions and also freed 160 vehicles stuck in the snow. 
Rescue workers distributed blankets and food packages among those affected by the frost, Valipour added. 
The Iran Meteorological Organization on Wednesday stated that heavy rain will continue to fall in 11 provinces and even intensify in three provinces of Bushehr, Fars and southern parts of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad. 
The organization also issued warnings that roads to cold areas, especially villages, could get blocked by blizzards and floods and inflict severe damage on energy infrastructures. 
Flights could be postponed or canceled and farms could be harmed, exacting a heavy toll on the country’s agriculture, the statement said. 
Mountain climbers have been warned to stay home for the time being and locals and travelers to avoid waterways in case of floods caused by rainfall or by the melting of snow. 
Experts suggest that constant rain was needed to save the nation from a years-long dry spell that has emptied damns or significantly reduced water reservoirs. 
Autumn has been uncharacteristically dry and warm this year in Iran which some have linked to global changes in weather patterns as a result of climate change.