72 dead in road accidents during Eid holiday
ANKARA
Thousands of traffic accidents resulted in the death of 72 people across the country during the nine-day Eid al-Fitr holiday, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on June 25.
Concluding a series of his social media posts updating the figures on accidents throughout the holiday period, Yerlikaya revealed that 7,216 traffic incidents occurred over the nine days.
Beyond the 72 fatalities, these accidents resulted in injuries to 12,274 people, the minister said.
Yerlikaya also announced that 47,776 buses underwent inspection, with 215 of them being involved in accidents, leading to one fatality. He further disclosed that punitive actions were taken against 7,485 buses.
The Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha typically lasts four days, but this year, the government extended the holiday to nine days, prompting many to travel to beachside destinations. The authorities estimated that more than 10 million people hit the roads.
As this year's Eid holiday coincided with the end of the school year on June 14, marking the start of what is often termed the "high season" for the tourism sector, the roads witnessed an intense surge in the number of passengers.
