Smoke, Smog and ‘Black Rain’: Oil Strikes Leave Tehran Facing Toxic Air Crisis

Picture Credit: by ceobs

Thick plumes of smoke drifting across Tehran have raised serious health concerns after air strikes on oil depots and refineries around the Iranian capital. Satellite images captured on 9 March show fires still burning at two major oil facilities days after the attacks, while experts warn that the pollution created by the strikes could be unprecedented for such a densely populated city.

The strikes, part of the ongoing US-Israeli military campaign against Iran that began on 28 February, have damaged at least four oil facilities near the capital. Images reviewed by BBC Verify show heavy smoke rising from the Shahran oil depot in north-west Tehran and the Tehran oil refinery in the city’s south-east. Footage taken after one of the attacks revealed massive fireballs lighting up the night sky as fuel storage tanks burned.

Residents say the pollution has transformed the city’s atmosphere. A woman in her twenties told BBC Persian she could smell burning across the city and could barely see the Sun through the haze. Tehran, home to nearly 10 million people with millions more living nearby, now faces a dangerous mix of industrial smoke and urban pollution.

Scientists warn that oil fires release a complex cocktail of harmful chemicals. Incomplete burning of oil can produce carbon monoxide and soot particles, while sulphur and nitrogen oxides may form acids when mixed with rainwater. Other pollutants may include hydrocarbons, metallic compounds and droplets of oil.

Picture Credit: by The New York Times

Adding to public concern, residents reported rainfall turning dark in colour; a phenomenon known as “black rain.” Experts say the rain likely collected soot and other pollutants from the air as it fell, concentrating contamination on the ground.

The World Health Organization has warned that damage to oil infrastructure could contaminate air, food and water supplies. Health experts say intense exposure to these pollutants can cause immediate respiratory problems and may increase long-term risks such as chronic lung disease and cancer.

With rain forecast in the coming days, some pollutants may disperse, but scientists caution that contamination could persist in soil and waterways long after the fires are extinguished.