Thousands stranded as snow disrupts transport in Turkey and Greece

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  • Flights are slowly resuming in Istanbul
  • Thousands evacuated from Athens highway
  • Snow on Antalya beaches for the first time in 29 years

ISTANBUL/ATHENS, Jan 25 (Reuters) – Some flights from Istanbul airport resumed on Tuesday after nearly 24 hours of cancellations as heavy snow clogged roads and brought thousands of people across Turkey to a standstill and Greece.

In Athens, thousands of people were evacuated from a highway and took refuge at the city‘s airport after Monday’s severe snowstorm. On Tuesday, dozens of cars were still covered in snow as snow plows tried to clear the roads. Read more

In Istanbul, the airport, among the largest in the world, was under a thick blanket of snow with covered runways and planes.

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Snowfall began late last week and has intensified in recent days in the city of 16 million, delaying buses and ferries and prompting a ban on driving private vehicles.

“We’ve been here for more than 24 hours already,” said Selim Kilik, who planned to fly to Paris this week. He complained of a lack of staff and information.

An airport spokesman said the limited flights started around 10:00 GMT (1:00 p.m.) after a 10 p.m. delay, and scheduled flights would resume around midnight.

Turkish Airlines (THYAO.IS) said earlier it halted all flights until 21:00 GMT.

Ugurcan Guller, who was waiting for a domestic flight, said stranded passengers had problems with baggage, tickets and food at Istanbul airport.

“We have been sleeping miserably on the floor since yesterday,” he said. “We call on the authorities to find a solution for us.”

SNOWY BEACHES

Stalled cars are covered in snow after heavy snowfall in Istanbul, Turkey January 24, 2022 in this still image obtained from social media video taken January 24, 2022. Okan Tanis/via REUTERS

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Storms swept across the region from Greece and across Turkey, leaving snow on the beaches of the southern resort town of Antalya for the first time in 29 years.

A video posted on social media showed a man skiing through the streets of Istanbul, people waving at him.

Governor Ali Yerlikaya took the rare step of banning private cars until 10:00 GMT, while officials were allowed until Wednesday to keep travel to a minimum.

Buses were suspended until Wednesday and vehicles arriving from the west of the city were banned.

Other images showed trucks and cars stuck along highways in and around Istanbul. The crossing through the Bosphorus Strait reopened on Tuesday, while people were evacuated from stranded vehicles, Transport Minister Adil Karaismailoglu said. Read more

Across the country, around 4,600 people were stranded on roads and elsewhere, and thousands were placed in temporary accommodation, the Disaster and Emergencies Authority said.

In Athens, more than 3,500 people had been evacuated as of Tuesday morning, some abandoning their cars on foot, but around 1,200 cars remained stuck on the Attiki Odos, the capital’s main ring road, government spokesman Giannis said. Oikonomou.

As temperatures plummeted overnight, soldiers distributed food, water and blankets to drivers, some of whom were stuck in their cars for more than 10 hours.

Parts of Athens have been hit by power cuts and the grid operator said crews were working to restore power.

Authorities declared Tuesday and Wednesday a public holiday, closing schools, public offices and private businesses except pharmacies, supermarkets and gas stations.

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Additional reporting by Ezgi Erkoyun, Tuvan Gumrukcu and Ceyda Caglayan in Istanbul and Karolina Tagaris in Athens; Written by Jonathan Spicer; Editing by Janet Lawrence

Our standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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