VIDEO: Worst snowstorm for seven years hits Istanbul

Flights have been cancelled, ferry services shut and schools closed as the heaviest snowfall to hit Istanbul for several years continued to strike on Monday.

On Sunday, Istanbul Mayor Istanbul Mayor Kadir Topbas said the metropolis faced its heaviest snowfall since 2009. The snow began falling late on Friday.Topbas detailed the measures being taken and urged residents not to hit the road without winter tyres, or to go by public transport.

Turkish Airlines, the country’s national carrier, said only 292 departures were expected to leave from Istanbul's Ataturk Airport on Monday.

Usually the airport would see more than 1,500 landings and take-offs per day.

The passage from the Black Sea to the Marmara Sea through the Bosphorus and vice versa has been cut, the statement said.

Weather experts have said that they expect snow to continue until Wednesday, reported Hurriyet, especially in central and northern areas.

Vasip Sahin, the governor of Istanbul, said that public servants would end their day early at 3.30pm due to the heavy snowfall.

Ferry services between the European and Asian sides of the city were scrapped and schools across the city closed.

Turkish Airlines CEO Bilal Eksi said more than 600 flights had been cancelled on Sunday and over 10,000 travellers unable to reach Istanbul had been put up in hotels worldwide.

Others were left stranded inside the airport when their flights were cancelled. 

Despite the chaos on transport networks, some on social media complained that the snowfall was distracting local media from important political issues.

Turkey's deputy prime minister announced that Turkey may hold a referendum as soon as April on a new constitution that would hand president Recep Tayyip Erdogan sweeping new powers.