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Snowfall caused some traffic chaos in Istanbul (picture from January 24)
Photo: Ibrahim Oner / imago images/ZUMA Wire
Wintry weather with snowfall continues to affect air traffic in the Turkish metropolis of Istanbul.
The flight stop at the city's largest airport will be extended until 1 p.m. local time (11 a.m. CET), the operating company announced on Twitter.
The civil aviation authority also wrote that runways at Istanbul International Airport were still closed due to the weather conditions.
The state-owned airline Turkish Airlines said that there were also failures at the smaller Sabiha Gökçen Airport at the other end of the city.
The reason is a restriction on flights by the local authorities.
More snow expected
Istanbul governor Ali Yerlikaya banned the use of private vehicles in the metropolis.
Clearing vehicles are used to clear roads of snow and ice.
According to media reports, numerous people had to spend the night in the car.
It also snowed in the tourism areas of Bodrum and Antalya.
According to the weather agency, further snowfall is expected in the Istanbul region and in Anatolia during the course of Tuesday.
Snow in Greece too
Greece is also struggling with the onset of winter.
Because of the heavy snowfall in the capital Athens and the center of the country, thousands of motorists spent the night in their cars on highways.
Most flights from the capital's airport have been cancelled.
The military was on duty to get people out of their cars and put them in hotels – on Tuesday morning around 1,200 cars were still stuck in the metropolitan area, according to Greek media reports.
The chaos on the country's highways had already begun on Monday afternoon, when poorly equipped cars and trucks without winter tires and snow chains could no longer get on, blocking the way for the clearing equipment.
Winter tires are not compulsory in Greece - especially in the greater Athens area, it rarely snows in winter and when it does, it is rather light.
There were problems in other parts of the country too.
In many places, trees fell on power lines due to the snow load – electricity has not yet been restored everywhere.
The government ordered most companies, shops and authorities to remain closed on Tuesday.
From noon thaw is expected.
bbr/dpa