Istanbul gears up for snowy weather

ISTANBUL-Demirören News Agency

The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality has completed preparations for the winter months.

Across Istanbul, 235,000 tons of salt are kept ready to be poured when the main roads and streets are covered with snow.

Some 60,000 tons of salt will be loaded and distributed to districts on the Anatolian side of the metropolis from a compound in Kartal district.

“In winter, all the works are carried out based on AKOM in order to ensure the transportation of our citizens easily,” said Ayhan Taş, manager of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality’s Disaster Coordination Center (AKOM).

“We have 71 salt replenishment points with 7,000 employees, 300,000 vehicles and heavy machinery. In this situation, we act according to the information of almost 60 icing early warning systems,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality will help district municipalities over winter preparations. Istanbul Municipality Council has decided to send salt stocks to local administrations in accordance with their population and the total road length.