Storm tears off roofs, disrupts Istanbul transport

ISTANBUL

Strong southwesterly winds sweeping Türkiye’s Marmara region tore roofs off buildings, toppled trees onto cars and disrupted Istanbul’s ferry and rail services on Nov. 13.

Istanbul’s Disaster Coordination Center (AKOM) forecast gusts of 60 to 90 kilometers per hour, with the storm expected to last until noon on Nov. 14.

Roof debris from a 5-story building in Eyüpsultan damaged four parked cars. Fallen trees damaged vehicles in Güngören, Bahçelievler and Sultangazi. A 4-story building evacuated for urban renewal lost its roof in Sultangazi, where police and firefighters secured the area. Metal sheets near another empty building fell onto a sidewalk.

City Lines suspended Princes’ Islands services from Kabataş, Beşiktaş, Maltepe and Bostancı, plus the Büyükada-Sedef Adası, Bostancı-Moda-Karaköy-Kabataş, Sarıyer-Beykoz and Anadolu Kavağı-Rumeli Kavağı-Sarıyer routes.

Aşiyan services to Üsküdar, Anadolu Hisarı and Küçüksu were diverted to Bebek. Both the Maçka-Taşkışla and Eyüp-Piyer Loti cable cars stopped. The T1 tram briefly operated in two sections: Kabataş-Yusufpaşa and Çapa-Bağcılar.

Winds reached 68 kilometers per hour in the northwestern province of Bursa, making walking difficult. Rain was forecast to replace the wind the following day. The weather service warned Bursa residents about transport disruption, falling trees and roofs.

Gas distributor İGDAŞ warned of flue-gas poisoning during lodos winds. It said residents should keep vents open, switch off flue-connected boilers, water heaters and stoves before bed and avoid sleeping in rooms containing these appliances.