A violent outbreak of winter has wreaked havoc in Greece and Turkey. Istanbul Airport was closed on Monday due to a heavy snowstorm.
The masses of snow caused the roof of a freight terminal to collapse. In Athens, numerous schools and vaccination centers had to close. Both countries reported power outages and traffic delays due to the adverse weather conditions.
Flight operations in Istanbul will be “temporarily suspended for safety reasons,” said the Turkish airport authority. According to media reports, it was the first time since its opening in 2019 that Istanbul Airport was completely closed due to bad weather.
Video shows weather chaos: Snowstorm paralyzes Istanbul Airport(01:03)
Because of new heavy snowfall from Monday evening, the authorities advised the residents of the metropolis to stay at home as a precaution.
Numerous accidents and long traffic jams
Many shopping centers in Istanbul closed early and delivery services stopped operating. Children played in the snow and built snowmen in numerous squares in the city. Drivers meanwhile had to contend with the poor road conditions: there were numerous accidents on steep sections of road and long traffic jams formed on the freeways.
It also snowed in large parts of Greece on Monday – even on the southern island of Crete. The low Elpis, named after the Greek word for hope, caused low temperatures of minus 14 degrees Celsius in parts of the country at night. Schools in the greater area of the capital Athens, vaccination centers and the parliament were closed.
Around Athens, numerous motorists were stuck in their vehicles due to the poor traffic conditions. The police blocked the freeway ramps in the north of the capital. “My wife hasn’t had anything to eat since morning. We only had a small bottle of water with us,” a driver told Star TV.
Beaches buried under snow
The snow also hampered metro services to Athens Airport. Initially, however, there were no problems with air and ferry traffic. According to government spokesman Giannis Ekonomou, the authorities are working flat out to clear highways and other major roads. According to civil defense, the snowfall should continue until Tuesday.
On the island of Mykonos, beaches lay under a white blanket of snow. On other Cyclades islands like Andros, Naxos and Tinos, mountain villages were cut off from the outside world. On the island of Euboea, where devastating forest fires had raged in the summer, the power went out in some villages. (AFP)