Iranian emergency officials report a 90 percent decrease in deaths and a 70 percent drop in injuries during this year's Chaharshanbe Suri fire festival, with two fatalities and 945 injuries recorded nationwide.
Iranian emergency officials reported a dramatic reduction in casualties during this year's Chaharshanbe Suri (Festival of Fire) celebrations. The annual event, known for widespread street fireworks and bonfires, took place against the backdrop of an ongoing regional war that includes massive Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iranian targets, as well as nationwide banking shutdowns.
According to a report published by حامیان پزشکیان (Supporters of Pezeshkian), a channel politically aligned with Iran's reformist president, the country witnessed a steep decline in festival-related accidents. Citing the head of Iran's Emergency Organization, the channel noted a "90 percent decrease in fatalities and a 70 percent decrease in the number of injured" compared to the previous year.
The national casualty toll for this year's events stood at 945 total injured and two dead. Both fatalities occurred during incidents in Fars province.
While overall numbers dropped significantly, emergency services still recorded hundreds of severe traumas. According to the reported data, the 945 casualties included: 40 amputations 240 eye injuries
The source channel, 'حامیان پزشکیان' (Supporters of Pezeshkian), is overtly aligned with Iran's incumbent president, but in this instance is functioning as a distributor of apolitical public health data from the national Emergency Organization. The dramatic 70-90% drop in festival casualties is reported without explicitly identifying a cause in the source text, though it coincides precisely with the massive military conflict, airstrikes on Iranian cities, and domestic crises outlined in the background context.