"All of Tehran province's schools... except Firuzkuh and Damavand counties are closed for tomorrow and the day after tomorrow due to increasing air pollution," an official in the Tehran Governor's Office said on Saturday.
The official also said that the universities will also be shut down over the next two days and the classes will be held online. The school week in Iran starts on Saturday and finishes on Wednesday. Thursdays and Fridays are weekends.
The official also said that the cars will not be allowed to enter downtown Tehran as the routine traffic schemes have changed and the municipality will not issue traffic permits until further notice. The cars will be allowed to enter the city based on the digit on the right of their plates on alternate days.
A health official at the health ministry also said that they have asked the interior ministry to allow the government employees to work from home over the next two days.
"Due to the continued air pollution and unhealthy weather conditions for all age groups, the Ministry of Health has submitted a request for working from home for Tehrani employees on Sunday and Monday, January 1 and 2. Fortunately, this request was accepted by the Ministry of Interior and we are waiting for the final approval of the Tehran Governor Office," the Head of Air Health and Climate Change Department of the Ministry of Health said.
Air pollution commonly occurs in Tehran, a city of 15 million population, and other large cities in the country when the weather is cold during autumn and winter when there is no wind or rain and temperature inversion happens.
According to studies results available on the Internet, temperature inversions affect air pollution because they change the dynamics of air movement. Warm air rises in the atmosphere because it is less dense and, therefore, more buoyant than the cooler air above it.
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