Iran shutters state offices, banks and schools for 2 days over extreme heat

Health ministry warns of potential increase in heat exhaustion as Iranian cities sizzle under 40°C (104°F) temperatures

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran announced a nationwide two-day holiday because of increasing temperatures, state media reported Tuesday.

Government spokesperson Ali Bahadori Jahromi said the decision to close governmental offices, banks, and schools on Wednesday and Thursday came after the Iranian Health Ministry warned about a possible increase in cases of heat exhaustion because of high temperatures, the official IRNA news agency reported.

In recent days, cities and towns in Iran have seen temperatures around 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). The capital, Tehran, experienced 38°C (100.4°F) on Tuesday.

The meteorological office predicted Tehran would see temperatures of 39°C (102.2°F) over the next three days

Ahvaz, the capital of an oil-rich province in the country’s southwest, experienced 50°C (122°F) on Tuesday.

In 2022, Iran registered its hottest temperature at 53°C (127.4°F) in Ahvaz.

Earth’s hottest day in modern history was likely July 4, when the average global temperature reached 17.18°C (62.9°F). It was mainly blamed on climate change and the emerging El Nino pattern.

The highest registered air temperature on Earth is 56.7°C (134°F), recorded July 10, 1913, in Death Valley in the United States.