The risk of floods has forced the Iranian government to order the evacuation of 70 villages in the oil-rich southwestern province of Khuzestan on Tuesday, the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported.
The villages were close to the Dez and Karkheh rivers, Shush county governor Adnan Qazi said, quoted by IRNA.
At least 45 people were killed in the past two weeks in flash floods in northern and southern Iran after the heaviest rains in at least a decade.
Iran has announced a state of emergency in southern provinces threatened by flooding and has evacuated dozens of villages already.
Floods have affected at least 23 out of Iran’s 31 provinces since heavy downpours began on March 19.
Western and southwestern parts of the country are expected to bear the brunt of the storms in the days ahead.
