Floods have killed three people in Iran in the last 24 hours, according to the country’s Red Crescent.

Since Wednesday, six provinces of East Azarbaijan, West Azarbaijan, Ilam, Kordestan, Kermanshah and Lorestan have been in need of rescue services due to heavy rains.

Morteza Moradipour from the Red Crescent said 861 people in 11 cities and 21 villages have received rescue services so far. A further 385 people provided with emergency accommodation and 24 transferred to safe houses.

Shahin Fat’hi, CEO of the Red Crescent Society of Tehran warned about the possibility of flooding in some areas of the province saying that all rescue teams and operational centers in Tehran are on alert.

The massive flood in Iran took the lives of 62 people last year and dozens of others went missing. Indian sub-continent summer monsoons usually bring rain showers to Iran’s arid plateau, but every few decades the impact becomes more intense and causes flooding.

Partly due to the arid nature of the land and partly because of neglect in urban planning, even a modestly strong storm leads to deadly floods in Iran. Many dry riverbeds are choked off with construction or debris dumped by residents, leading to sudden flash floods in places no one expected.