Latest Details on Flood Damage in Golestan Province / Flood Blocks Roads to 14 Villages

The recent flood in Minudasht has caused damage to hundreds of residential units and hectares of farmland, and continues to block access roads to 14 villages.

The governor of Minodasht, referring to the extensive damages caused by the recent flood in this city, said: 147 mm of rain in Balkane region and 120 mm in Sasan village caused the communication road of 14 villages to be cut off, hundreds of hectares of agricultural lands were damaged, and 200 to 250 residential units were flooded and destroyed.

Explaining the latest situation of the areas affected by the recent flood, Alireza Mustafalou said: Before the rains, an orange level warning was issued at the province and city level, and the necessary notifications were made for the preparation of managers of executive bodies, members of the crisis management staff and citizens, but the intensity of rains in some areas of the city was unprecedented in the past few years.

He added: According to the recorded statistics, the amount of rainfall in the Balkan region reached 147 mm, Sasan village reached 120 mm, and Dozin reached 96 mm. The high volume of runoff caused by these rains caused significant damage to infrastructure, communication routes, agricultural lands and residential units.

The Governor of Minodasht, referring to the disconnection of 20 villages in the first stage of the flood, said: With the efforts of the General Administration of Roads and Road Transport, the communication path of six villages has been reopened, but the communication path of 14 villages within the boundaries of Qala Qafeh village is still disconnected.

Mustafalou continued: In order to reach the center of the city, the residents of these villages have to travel three times as far as the usual route. The reopening of this axis is one of the main priorities of the city, and the necessary follow-ups are being done to establish safe and faster communication between these villages.

Explaining the damages caused to the agricultural sector, he said: During the recent flood, about 250 hectares of saffron fields, 200 hectares of rapeseed fields and 45 hectares of tobacco fields were damaged. Also, about 400 hectares of agricultural lands were damaged in the mountain roads and nearly 100 kilometers of roads between farms were also damaged.

Referring to the damages caused to the electricity supply network, the governor of Minodasht said: "The electricity of 20 villages was cut off during the rains, and with the round-the-clock efforts of the relevant forces, the electricity of 18 villages was connected and the electricity of the remaining two villages is on the agenda to be restored as soon as possible."

Mustafalou also said about the drinking water supply situation of the affected areas: the drinking water supply of 18 villages was cut off during the flood, and with the follow-ups, the water supply of 9 villages has been connected and the efforts to restore the water supply of the other 9 villages are continuing. It is expected that the problem of these villages will be solved in the next two to three days.

He added: The water transmission line and the spring supplying drinking water in Duzin city were also damaged during the flood and the necessary measures are being taken to solve the problems in this sector. Also, the telephone connection of six villages has been cut, and with the provision of electricity to the remaining areas, the possibility of re-establishing telephone connections will be provided.

Referring to the damages caused to the residential areas, Minodasht governor noted: According to initial reports, about 200 to 250 residential units in the city have been flooded or destroyed, and the amount of damage has been estimated from 10 to 100 percent. However, a detailed assessment of the amount of damages and determining the condition of the damaged units still needs to be done.

Mustafalou added: The flood also caused damage to the infrastructure of rural roads, tables and asphalt, and some roads in the villages and the city of Duzin were damaged, and their reconstruction needs to be investigated and funded.

He also said about the human casualties caused by the flood: During this incident, three missing persons were reported, one of the missing persons was found alive and the body of another person was also discovered. At present, one person is still missing and the search operation by the Red Crescent forces continues.

Referring to the necessity of preventing the recurrence of flood damage in the upcoming rains, the governor of Minodasht said: After this incident, a crisis management meeting was held with the presence of the Deputy Civil Affairs Coordinator of Golestan Governorate, the general managers of the executive bodies and city officials, and the issue of dredging rivers and reducing the risk of flooding in vulnerable areas was discussed.

He stated that an important part of the damage caused by floods is related to the condition of rivers and the capacity of flowing water, and added: Three mountain axes in the city are in serious need of river dredging and it has been decided to use the crisis management facilities of the province, executive bodies and the private sector to implement this operation.