Meteorologists warn new cold front will hit Turkey

Temperatures this week will decrease by 3 to 4 degrees Celsius, while coastal regions will drop to as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius. Meteorologists warned drivers to be careful on the roads.

Many cities across Turkey have also been hit by heavy snow and a cold front. About 530 villages in the eastern Black Sea region, including Gümüşhane, Bayburt, Rize, Artvin and Trabzon, were closed to traffic due to the snowfall, which started in the evening on Sunday and continued throughout Monday. Officials at the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality said the Disaster Coordination Center (AKOM) continues to confront the adverse weather conditions. While the Bosporus Bridge had problems on Monday, with the span closed to traffic for about one hour, the municipality reported that 3,500 employees and 750 vehicles are working in İstanbul to salt the roads.

The province of Ordu currently has one meter of snow on the ground. Teams are working to clear the roads, with streets in 322 villages closed to traffic. 

In addition to the road problems, airlines are also affected by the cold weather. Some scheduled flights between İstanbul and Erzurum were cancelled after the eastern province was hit by heavy snow and wintry weather Sunday night.

Children enjoyed the snow that hit İstanbul over the weekend. Many cities throughout Turkey have seen snowfall and cold weather over the past few days.

The İstanbul Waterworks Authority (İSKİ) issued an announcement and warned that the temperatures will drop on Monday and for this reason, pipes may freeze. İSKİ also said pipes should be properly insulated to protect them from bursting.

Hasan Aslan, the general manager of the Antalya Directorate of Agriculture, noted that the wintry weather was causing concerns with farmers and stated that in order to protect themselves from financial hardship due to agricultural loss, they should carry crop insurance.

İstanbul Technical University (İTÜ) was closed on Monday and Tuesday due to heavy snow, while civil servants suffering from disabilities have been given three days’ leave.

Meanwhile, snow at one of Turkey’s most popular skiing centers, Bolu-Kartalkaya, has reached two meters, meteorologists said on Monday. There are currently 1.15 meters of snow on Bursa’s Uludağ Mountain and Kayseri’s Mount Erciyes, which are also among Turkey’s most important winter tourism areas.

The weather in Uludağ dropped to about minus 15 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, the Bursa Meteorological Bureau warned people who wanted to travel to Uludağ that they should have a chain for their cars.

The snow, which started in Kayseri on Sunday night and continues to be a problem for locals, caused about 50 villages to be closed to traffic.

Hotels at Kartalkaya were completely booked after it snowed in Bolu for three days. Stating that the skiing season is good this year, hotels are pleased with the heavy snow and cold weather. Halit Ergül, the general manager of the Grand Kartal Hotel, said the snow, the semester break and the full hotels have all conspired to make for a good season, even though it began snowing later than expected.

Police officer challenges shelter official

A dispute broke out on Sunday night in Ankara between a police officer trying to help a homeless person in the freezing weather and a municipal worker who initially refused the person entry into a shelter for the homeless. Ankara police were out looking for homeless people sleeping rough to get them into shelters to prevent them from dying of cold. One officer found a homeless person with mental disabilities freezing under a bridge and took him to a shelter. However, the municipal officer on duty said that he could not authorize entry because it was too late in the evening. An argument ensued, and the police officer pointed out that it was the institution’s responsibility to take care of the man or he would have to be taken to a police station. The municipal officer relented, and the homeless man was admitted to the shelter, which is now home to 25 individuals. Ankara Today’s Zaman