'Oil rain' engulfs Tehran, gets compared with Hiroshima's 1945 'black rain'
Iran's Red Crescent Society warns the rain could contain toxic hydrocarbon compounds as well as sulfur, nitrogen oxides
Problems for Iran seem to be far from over. On Sunday, when Israel struck oil storage facilities in Tehran, it led to a hazardous situation by sending up pillars of smoke and fire.
This caused oil-tainted rain and thick black smoke across the city — that's home to nearly 10 million people.
Images and videos going viral showed dark clouds hanging over Tehran. Many residents shared that the rain carried an ‘oily residue’ that stained buildings, vehicles. They have now been urged to wear masks.
Iran's Red Crescent Society warned that the rain could contain toxic hydrocarbon compounds as well as sulfur and nitrogen oxides. These substances may pose health risks, including breathing difficulties and skin irritation.
The organisation advised residents to remain indoors, cover openings in their homes with damp cloth and remove any clothes contaminated by the rainwater.
This is Ghaem Maqam Farahani Street in Tehran, Iran today.
Oil fell with the rain, not normal rain that helps people, crops, trees, animals, and nature. This is an ecological disaster. pic.twitter.com/nmKETu59as
— Weather Monitor (@WeatherMonitors) March 8, 2026
Smoke rises after a reported strike on Shahran fuel tanks in Tehran on March 8. Reuters
Iranian officials drew a comparison with the “black rain” that fell after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in 1945, when soot and debris mixed with rainfall across the devastated city. However, experts say the situation in Tehran is very different because oil fires do not produce radioactive fallout.
