Snow and wintry weather sweep across Turkey; many roads closed

Snowfall hit İstanbul's higher elevations early on Sunday, starting as rain before turning to snow and spreading to the rest of the city. A written statement released by the İstanbul Municipality's Disaster Coordination Center (AKOM) noted that snowfall was reported in Silivri, Kınalı, İkitelli, Sarıyer and Zekeriyaköy on the European side and in Beykoz, Kavacık, Üsküdar, Çamlıca, Tuzla and Pendik on the Asian side of İstanbul.

Teams from AKOM spread salt on the roads as a precaution against icy driving conditions, according to the statement. It was further stated that no accidents had been reported due to snow, although icing was expected on bridges and viaducts due to frost Monday night. Snowfall left the European side of the city yesterday morning, but lingered on the Asian side till the afternoon.

Many İstanbul residents and tourists visiting the city enjoyed the snowfall in historic spots such as Sultanahmet and Taksim Square. Ankara also saw snowfall. Teams from the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality spread salt on the roads to prevent icing.

In eastern Turkey, authorities warned against heavy snowfall between Gümüşhane and Artvin provinces, saying village roads may be closed due to snow.

Meanwhile, in Turkey’s famous skiing center of Uludağ, in the western province of Bursa, the snow cover exceeded 50 centimeters yesterday, up from the 12 centimeters with which Uludağ had welcomed the new year. Snow was expected to continue falling in Uludağ until afternoon today. Temperatures will reportedly rise starting from today.

Snowfall that began Sunday night and continued through the morning disrupted daily life in the eastern province of Ağrı, with residents clearing the doorsteps of their houses and workplaces.

Snow began on Sunday evening and continued through yesterday afternoon on the D-100 highway and TEM highway leading to the province of Bolu, affecting traffic flow. Cars had trouble staying on the roads, and several ended up in ditches because of the icy conditions. Bolu Meteorology Department head Erol Öztabak said the snowfall could continue until Monday evening and warned drivers about icing, noting that temperatures were expected to fall to minus eight degrees Celsius Monday night.


/Todays Zaman/