A massive influx of dust storms in recent weeks has once again paralyzed Iran’s southwestern province of Khuzestan. The province has been reeling from dust storms since the early 2000s, a problem which often leads to schools and government offices being closed, power, water and internet outages as well as residents being rushed to hospitals with respiratory complications.
According to a Feb. 18 assessment by the Khuzestan Environmental Protection Office, the concentration of dust particles in the provincial capital of Ahvaz was 1,841 micrograms per cubic meter — 12 times higher than the maximum recommended. In previous years, one city in the province was even reported to have 66 times more dust particles in the air than the maximum.