Storms disrupt sea travel across western Türkiye

ISTANBUL

Severe weather warnings have caused widespread disruptions to sea passenger transport in western Türkiye, with ferry services canceled across multiple provinces.

Turkish State Meteorological Service issued a storm alert for the Marmara and northern Aegean regions, placing 11 of the country's 81 provinces, including the megacity of Istanbul and the provinces of İzmir and Bursa, under a yellow-level weather warning — the lowest alert tier, which indicates potentially hazardous conditions.

Sea bus services from the northwestern city of Bursa to Istanbul were suspended due to rough seas and high waves on Sept. 26.

In the western Balıkesir province, authorities have suspended all sailings on the Narlı–Marmara route for Sept. 26 due to storm alerts.

Further north, rough seas also halted all voyages on the Kabatepe–Gökçeada line in Çanakkale on Sept. 26, citing unsafe weather conditions in the Aegean.

Winds are forecast to reach up to 80 kilometers per hour through the night of Sept. 27 in the region, prompting authorities to caution residents about risks such as roof damage, falling trees and transport delays.

In Istanbul, strong northerly winds are expected to push perceived temperatures down to around 17–18 degrees Celsius.

Similar conditions are forecast for much of the Marmara coastline.

The storm-related travel disruptions follow days of heavy rainfall in Türkiye’s Black Sea region, where floods and landslides damaged infrastructure, disrupted daily life and forced precautionary evacuations.

In the northeastern city of Rize, swollen rivers washed away a bridge and temporarily cut access to the tourist hot spot of Ayder Plateau, while several families were relocated in the town of Fındıklı as water levels reached critical heights.