Türkiye is facing a prolonged spell of extreme winter weather, with freezing temperatures, strong winds and a heightened avalanche risk persisting into the first days of the new year, according to the country’s weather bureau.
Authorities issued a high avalanche warning for the high-altitude areas of Eastern Anatolia and the Eastern Black Sea region, where snow accumulation remains significant.
They urged residents and travelers in mountainous areas to avoid risky slopes and remain alert to official warnings.
According to the Turkish State Meteorological Service, heavy snowfall largely weakened across western and central regions.
However, while the western region sees a slight thaw, a brutal deep freeze continues to grip central and eastern Türkiye.
Central Anatolia is among the hardest hit, where nighttime temperatures are forecast to fall as low as minus 18 degrees Celsius.
Heavy snowfall is set to further blanket the Black Sea coast and eastern provinces like Erzurum, Kars and Siirt, heightening the looming threat of avalanches across the rugged terrain.
Compounding the freeze, fierce storms are expected to lash the country from the Marmara to the Eastern Anatolia regions.
As snow and treacherous ice turned roads into hazards, education came to a standstill across much of the country on Dec. 2.
In Istanbul, the shutdown hit the districts of Beykoz, Kağıthane, Beşiktaş and Sarıyer, where in-person classes were officially suspended.
Additional shutdown spans from Bolu and Sinop in the north to Gaziantep and Kahramanmaraş in the south, stretching across the frozen eastern heartlands of Ağrı, Kars and Hakkari.
Meteorologists say the intense cold will continue through the weekend, especially in eastern Türkiye, while rain is expected to return to western regions early next week.
Istanbul and the western city of İzmir are looking at similar conditions with highs of around 9 degrees during the weekend.
Ankara is bracing for a bitter chill as the mercury plummets to around minus 12 degrees, barely reaching 2 degrees during the day.
