Tasnim � Iranian President Hassan Rouhani ordered senior officials of the country to make rapid efforts to provide assistance for the flood-hit people in the northern provinces of Golestan and Mazandaran.

In a statement issued on Saturday morning, Rouhani ordered Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli to speed up measures taken to help the people in the two provinces and dispatch necessary equipment and facilities from neighboring provinces.

The president also asked Rahmani Fazli to visit the flood-hit areas at the head of a delegation of rescue and medical officials as soon as possible.

Rouhani also held telephone conversations with the governor general of Mazandaran Province and the deputy governor of Golestan Province, discussing the latest reports on the floods and efforts to rescue the people.

Heavy rains have battered the northern provinces of Golestan and Mazandaran, leaving homes flooded and others without power.

At least 70 villages in Golestan and more than 200 in Mazandaran are inundated. Aqqala is the worst hit where landslides have killed two people, according to Director General of Golestan's Crisis Management Department Mojtaba Jamali.

High water has forced evacuations of several small farm communities as all farmland has been swamped, local reports said.

Footage from both provinces showed massive flows of water running over roads and streets, with cars being washed away, people struggling to walk, and traffic being disrupted.