A cold spell and snowfall throughout Turkey finally made its way to Istanbul on Saturday, covering parts of the city under a white blanket while causing disruptions to travel.
Higher altitude districts of the 16-million megapolis received heavy snowfall beginning Friday night. Locals enjoyed the view and snow at the Çamlıca Hill, the highest point in the city.
Istanbulites mainly heeded weeklong calls by the Turkish State Meteorological Service (TSMS), the provincial governorate and the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality's (IBB) Disaster Coordination Center (AKOM) to stay at home unless necessary, with streets largely occupied by residents who wanted to enjoy the snow.
Apart from several minor accidents, traffic inside the city was largely uninterrupted and major thoroughfares were open as the various municipalities were at the ready after plenty of advance warning regarding the impending snowfall.
Police and crews from the General Directorate of Highways (KGM) increased their efforts to ensure major highways and motorways leading to Istanbul would remain clear after snowfall increased in the neighboring provinces. Units were at the ready in the Mount Bolu pass on the D-100 highway connecting Istanbul with Ankara as the Düzce province received heavy snowfall on late Friday.
Turkish Airlines stated that 46 flights to and from the Sabiha Gökçen Airport scheduled for Saturday were canceled as snowfall is expected to affect the city's Asian side, the flag carrier announced late Friday. No disruptions were announced for flights from Istanbul Airport, but the airline called on passengers to check the status of their flights before departing for airports.
The snowfall will also benefit the city's dams, whose capacity levels have increased from 41% late last year to reach 53.4% as of Jan. 22. This figure was also significantly higher than last year's capacity rate for the same day, which stood at 31.3% after an extended dry spell.
