TEHRAN – Iranian government has earmarked a total budget of 500 billion rials (nearly $12 million) compensating for the losses resulting from floods hitting Mazandaran Province, northern part of the country, IRNA reported on Saturday.

While significant amount of precipitation in less than 24 hours has led to severe flooding in Mazandaran province since last week, claiming 5 lives, an estimated 7 trillion rials (about $166 million) was worth of damages, destroying infrastructures, residential units, roads and huge tracts of farmlands.

“With the decision of the National Disaster Management Organization, the first phase of government compensation payment will be spent on rehabilitating roads and other necessary infrastructures,” the province’s governor general Mohammad Eslami said.

Construction and rebuilding the flood-damaged infrastructures will begin within next week, he sated, adding, so far, some 500 billion rials (nearly $12 million) has been allocated by the government compensating for the flood affected areas.

He went on to say that the first part of government aids will be provided to the flood victims by the next week, prioritizing the most affected areas to assign the resources.

Due to the incident, some 2,650 houses have been devastated partially, of which some 82 houses have been totally destroyed, he concluded.

FB/MQ/MG