Iran flood: Devastating images show how Tehran battles heavy rain

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Iran battled torrential rain and floods across most of the country, warning citizens to stay vigilant after unprecedented flash flooding killed 23 people. The authorities also announced for the first time that seven people were killed a week ago in separate floods that swept the northeastern provinces of Golestan and Mazandaran. The latest deluge claimed the lives of 19 people and injured 98 in the worst-hit southern city of Shiraz, the rescue services said. There was also one death in each of the western provinces of Kermanshah, Lorestan and Kogiluyeh-Va-Boyerahmad, and another in the southwestern province of Khuzestand. (Reuters Photo)

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The disaster, which the energy minister blamed on climate change, struck in the middle of Iranian New Year holidays, with many relief workers on vacation and millions of Iranians on the roads. (Reuters Photo)

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Authorities sent out emergency warnings to the public on mobile phones as state television aired safety tips, including on how to leave cars stuck in floods. (Reuters Photo)

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Overall, at least 110 people were injured in this week's flooding, the health ministry said. (Reuters Photo)

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With at least 20 of Iran's 31 provinces experiencing floods or facing an imminent threat and more than 250 cities and villages needing emergency assistance, the country's National Crisis Management Committee was put on its highest alert level. (Reuters Photo)

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Iran's meteorological service has warned of more heavy showers through to Wednesday, and flood warnings have gone out for central provinces including Isfahan and Tehran. (AP Photo)

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Hundreds of villages in western Iran have been cut off with many also losing electricity and normal water supplies, forcing authorities to deploy military helicopters to try to save and supply those left stranded. (AP Photo)

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Overnight the crisis management committee sent out multiple text messages to all mobile telephones in Iran urging people to be cautious and await instructions from official sources. (Reuters Photo)

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In the capital sandbags were laid at the entrances to underground stations as police made emergency plans to divert traffic from freeways already impeded by runoff from the downpour. (Reuters Photo)

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"Climate change is forcing itself on our country," said Energy Minister Reza Ardekanian, who is in charge of dams and water supply. (Reuters Photo)

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"These unprecedented floods in our country are because of climate change worldwide," he said on Monday, quoted by the Tasnim news agency. (Reuters Photo)

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The downpour has triggered scores of landslides that have blocked roads, especially in mountainous regions. (Reuters Photo)

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The floods followed extreme rainfall which at times was equivalent to half of the average annual levels within 24 hours. (Reuters Photo)

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Such a widespread flood threat is unprecedented in arid Iran, which until 2018 was dealing with decades of drought. (Reuters Photo)

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Vehicles are piled up on a street after a flash flood in the southern city of Shiraz, Iran. The provinces of Fars, Kurdistan, Qom and Isfahan are also on alert for imminent flooding. (AP Photo)