Three major reservoirs in Iran have dried up and eight others are close to drying up, the Iranian news agency IRNA reported today, quoted by BTA.
The average water level in the reservoirs is more than 25% lower than last year, despite strict restrictions on water use.
Iran is among the driest countries in the world and has seen a significant drop in rainfall in recent years. Periods of drought and extreme weather events have increased sharply. The water crisis has been growing for years and this year has hit Tehran with its 15 million inhabitants particularly hard, DPA notes.
The authorities fear that water in the Iranian capital could run out by October and have taken drastic measures. Water supplies in many parts of Tehran and other cities are cut off for hours every day.
Water-poor provinces in the central and southwestern parts of the country are being hit even harder by the crisis, with summer temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius.