Following the worsening air-pollution crisis across various regions of Iran, Mohammad-Esmaeil Tavakoli, the head of Tehran Province’s emergency services, announced that in late November—equivalent to late November in the Gregorian calendar—emergency missions related to air pollution in this province had increased to more than 30%.
He added: “In the past eight days, 28,000 missions have been carried out, 31% of which were related to pollution.”
With the intensification of air pollution and the spread of influenza in Iran, emergency task forces in various provinces announced the broadest wave of school and university closures in recent months for November 30.
In Tehran Province, education in all schools and universities is remote on November 30 and December 1.
Emergency task forces in fourteen provinces announced the most extensive wave of school and university closures in recent months for December 1.
Government offices in the capital have also been instructed to operate with only one-third in-person capacity and to send most employees to remote work.
At the same time, truck traffic inside the city has been banned; parks, cinemas, amusement parks, sports halls, and public gathering centers have been closed; and all outdoor and indoor sports or cultural events have been suspended.
This decision has affected millions of students and disrupted a significant portion of urban activity.
Severe shortage of emergency equipment in Tehran
As citizen demand for urgent medical services has increased, the head of Tehran Province’s emergency services announced a serious shortage of equipment.
Tavakoli said Tehran currently lacks 400 emergency bases and 500 ambulances.
He added that Tehran, with a population of about 14 million, has only 200 ambulances, and due to the city’s geography, heavy traffic, and limited access routes, the current resources do not meet the needs of residents.
Despite repeated warnings about shortages in emergency resources, Iran’s regime has taken no effective measures in recent years to address equipment shortages or improve medical infrastructure.
The head of Tehran Province’s emergency services added that the institution has only two helicopters and three fixed-wing aircraft.
Tavakoli also defended the decision not to station emergency units in Tehran’s main squares, saying: “In the past, fourteen bus-ambulances were stationed in major squares, which was mostly symbolic.”
Continuation of heavy fuel oil (mazut) burning in Iran
In September, Shina Ansari, the head of Iran’s Department of Environment, cited the country’s political conditions, sanctions, and restrictions as reasons for the failure to fully implement the Clean Air Act.
Defending the government’s performance, she said low-sulfur mazut was burned last year at the Shazand Arak power plant.
Iran’s Power Plants Burning Mazut Despite Ongoing Air Pollution
However, the state-run Fars News Agency reported on November 30 that fifteen power plants—including Tous, Montazer-e Qaem, Rajaei, Salimi, Sahand, Tabriz, Iranshahr, Montazeri, Zarand, Bandar Abbas, Moftah, Bistoon, Shazand, Ramin, and Isfahan—burn a total of 21.1 million liters of mazut daily.
Contrary to earlier promises by officials of Iran’s regime, burning mazut has become an official and relied-upon method for the government to manage the energy crisis, and this practice continues.
