At least 10 climbers have died and several more are missing after a blizzard caused avalanches in the mountains north of Iran’s capital, Tehran, state media reported on Saturday.
Several climbers have remained missing since Friday, when two deaths were reported, while the number reported as missing has increased as concerned families contact authorities, state television said.
Nine people died on the mountain and one died in the hospital after being rescued, Mehdi Valipour, head of Iran’s Red Crescent emergency operations, was quoted by state broadcaster IRIB.
At least seven climbers have yet to be found on three popular trails, Valipour said earlier.
The search was abandoned at nightfall on Saturday, but will resume on Sunday morning.
A member of the Red Crescent team said the rescue mission was complicated by bad weather and snow.
State television broadcast images of a helicopter rescue operation at the Tochal and Kolakchal peaks of the Alborz mountain range, overlooking Tehran. It showed Red Crescent officials carrying a body on a stretcher along a snowy mountain.
Tehran is at the foot of the Alborz mountain range, which has several ski resorts and a highest peak of 5,671 m (18,606 feet).
Snow and strong winds caused chaos in various parts of Iran, and maritime authorities were looking for the seven crew members of an Iranian transport ship that capsized in the rough waters of the Gulf on Friday, the semi-official news agency reported. ISNA.
“We are trying to find the missing by mobilizing all of our facilities and forces and informing passing ships and naval search and rescue centers in Oman, United Arab Emirates and Pakistan,” said Esmail Makkizadeh, deputy head of Iran’s regional maritime body. quoted as saying by ISNA.