Possibly the last bout before spring kicks off, heavy snowfall has blanketed many parts of Turkey.
In northwestern Turkey’s Sakarya, Düzce, Bartın and Zonguldak provinces, 361 settlements have been closed to traffic.
Municipalities in the region, and in the country’s biggest metropolis Istanbul, are striving hard to keep the roads free of snow to prevent any collisions and accidents.
The Thrace region, Istanbul, its eastern neighboring province Kocaeli and many other provinces in Marmara, in addition to eastern Turkey, have especially come under heavy snowfall as officials warned citizens to not use their vehicles and opt for public transportation.
Istanbul was hit by four days of snowfall, which receded only on Monday. It was not as strong as two days of precipitation that brought life to a halt in the metropolis in January, but it occasionally disrupted the traffic.
Turkey's flag carrier, Turkish Airlines (THY), has also canceled 100 flights scheduled for Saturday. "Due to the bad weather conditions, 100 flights scheduled for March 19 to and from Istanbul were canceled, including 80 flights at Istanbul Airport and 20 at Sabiha Gökçen Airport," the airline said in a statement.
"Due to severe weather conditions expected in Istanbul on March 19 - 20, some of our flights from/to Sabiha Gokcen Airport have been canceled," the flag carrier said in a later announcement.
"Passengers whose flights have been canceled can complete the change or refund process through our website, mobile application, call center at +90 850 333 0 849, and the agency from which they purchased the ticket, until the flight time," Turkish Airlines added in the statement.
Sabiha Gökçen Airport is Istanbul's main air hub on the city's Asian side.
