7Berkeh: We are now in the middle of the hot August, the second month of the summer. A global challenge namely, the heat has turned into a crisis in Iran. These days in Iran, wherever you go, the talk is about “power outages”, and seemingly, the heat continues without pause. According to the list of the meteorological database of “Ojimet”, even four cities in Iran, including Omidiyeh, Abadan, Ahvaz, and Masjed Soleiman, are listed among the ten hottest cities in the world in the early days of August 2025.
The Outages; Citizens’ Challenges and Problems
Consequently, due to the increase of the heat and the vast deficiencies in electricity supplies, widespread power outages are conducted in all the cities of Iran. In Gerash, like all the other cities, people check the daily blackout schedules to adjust their work and activities accordingly. The Wednesday holidays are officially approved and announced on a weekly basis, and now our lives must be adjusted to another challenge: power outages.
The blackout schedule is a power outage program that lists the outage hours in various neighborhoods. However, even the schedule does not necessarily proceed in an orderly manner. Officials such as Boroojerdi, the MP, promised to follow up the issue, but the efforts to reduce the outage hours in the Southern cities of Fars province have not only been ineffective, but also have led to disorders in the blackout program in recent days.
All the promises failed, and the outages continue vigorously, starting from 8:00 a.m., and we are experiencing power outages during the noon that is the peak of the heat. Although the duration of the power outage is two hours, sporadically the outages are applied in two periods, resulting in four hours of no electricity. At times, the outages are imposed earlier than the scheduled time, and this issue creates new problems for the citizens. Only as a few examples, one of the local bakers complained that only an earlier ten-minute power outage caused the dough to remain unbacked and spoil consequently. Also, a number of salespersons were unable to close the electric doors of their shops due to the disorders in the schedule of blackout.
Chel-Pasin; Hand-Made Fans and Kerosene Lamps
On the other hand, the power outage has led to the return of old items to many homes in Gerash, and also the expectation of summer rains in the South of Iran. In Gerash, due to the lack of electricity, people have resorted to using old tools like hand-made fans and in the case of outages at night, they use kerosene lamps; two iconic vintage tools, which the previous generations used and now are revived unwillingly. Although these items revive that old and pleasant nostalgic feeling, they are not necessarily good signs. It feels as if time is going backward in the 21st century.
Also, alongside the unprecedented heat, the people of the South of Iran, as well as Gerash, always await the phenomenon of the “Chel-Pasin” (Forty-Afternoons) during the three summer months and with the humidity rising, hoping that perhaps a little of the heat will be alleviated, thanks to a brief summer rains. This natural phenomenon is usually a summer downpour that has been repeated for many evenings in the summer, and among the older generations of Gerash, it is known as “Chel-Pasin”. It seems that once again, only nature can aid us.
