Video shows fires burning along the streets of the Iranian capital after oil spilled from depots destroyed by Israeli strikes leaked into parts of Tehran’s sewage system.
💢 “Black rain” and “nuclear winter” effect reported in Tehran after Israeli strikes on oil facilities
▪️ Israeli strikes on oil depots around Tehran have released massive quantities of toxic hydrocarbons, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides. Mixed with rainwater, these chemicals are causing highly acidic precipitation that can cause skin burns and severe lung damage upon contact, according to Iranian authorities.
▪️ Dense plumes of black smoke from the Shahran and other refineries have blotted out the sun, plunging parts of the city into darkness and creating a "nuclear winter" effect, NYT reported. Authorities warned that these noxious fumes cause acute respiratory distress and eye irritation.
▪️ Oil-saturated rainwater has blanketed the city, leaving rooftops, balconies, and streets covered in a thick, murky black liquid and oily soot. This contamination poses a long-term risk of heavy metals like nickel and vanadium leaching into the soil and local water systems.
▪️ Environmental groups warn the pollution threatens migratory birds crossing the Persian Gulf. The "black rain" and smoke plumes can cause internal organ damage and destroy the insulating properties of bird feathers, leading to hypothermia and death.
The Iranian Red Crescent Society warned of the dangers of the rain, advising residents to protect themselves and to cover exposed food from oily soot particles. Officials said the rain is highly corrosive and could potentially damage civilian structures.
🎥 Day time in Iran (clip via @tparsi). CNN reports on “oil rain” below.
The Strait of Hormuz has been closed for 8 days. Everyone thinks this is about oil. This is about what oil becomes. 92% of the world's sulfur comes from refining oil and gas. Close the Strait of Hormuz and you don't just lose 20 million barrels of crude per day. You lose the feedstock for sulfuric acid, the single most produced chemical on Earth. Sulfuric acid is how we extract copper. It's how we extract cobalt. Without it, you can't make transformers, EV batteries, or the substrates inside every data center on the planet. One chemical, made from one feedstock, shipped through one chokepoint. The cascade goes further: Qatar ships 30% of Taiwan's liquefied natural gas through Hormuz. Taiwan has 11 days of reserves left. TSMC, the company that makes 90% of the world's advanced chips, draws 8.9% of Taiwan's total electricity. No gas, no power, no chips. Then food. 33% of the world's nitrogen fertilizer feedstock moves through the Strait. Half of all humans alive today exist because of synthetic nitrogen. Sulfur, semiconductors, food. That makes three supply chains, one 21-nautical-mile chokepoint, and zero domestic alternatives at scale.