The secretary of Tehran City Council says rising pollution has increased the average number of deaths in the capital to 180 people a day.
ISNA reported on Tuesday December 22 that Mehdi Chamran told council the average number of deaths in Tehran is usually around 150 a day and he referred to the air pollution plaguing the city in the past week as the “silent killer”.
Tehran’s air quality has been in the red-alert zone since last week, with the volume of air pollutant particles rising seven times beyond acceptable levels.
Schools across the capital have been closed since last Saturday.
Chamran stressed that the temporary halt to sand mining is not sufficient and a permanent closure of these mines should be pursued by Tehran provincial authorities.
