Heat wave forces Iran to shutter government offices and banks. Electricity consumption soars

Associated Press

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A heat wave blanketing Iran has forced authorities to cut operating hours at various facilities Saturday and order all government and commercial institutions to shutter the following day. The temperature reached 107 degrees Fahrenheit in the capital, Tehran, according to weather reports. State-run IRNA news agency said banks, offices, and public institutions across the country close to protect people’s health and conserve energy, due to extreme temperatures and that only emergency services and medical agencies would be excluded. A spokesman for the country’s emergency department told the semi-official Mehr news agency 225 people had to seek medical help for heatstroke, adding that some had to be hospitalized.