Traffic accident kills 25 in SE Turkey, 16 injured

BİSMİL - Anatolia News Agency

The accident happened when a tractor trailor, which was loaded with bricks collided into a midibus carrying mostly students. 25 people died and 16 were injured. DHA photo

Twenty-five people were killed in a traffic accident in the district of Bismil in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır yesterday.

Diyarbakır Gov. Mustafa Toprak said a bus and a tractor trailer collided near Salat village of Bismil district, killing 25 people and wounding 16. Injured citizens were taken to hospitals in Bismil and Diyarbakır center, he said.

“There is information the truck had taken the wrong lane, the lane that the bus was travelling in. Technical inspections are ongoing,” Toprak said.

Toprak said the accident occurred around 1 p.m. while the bus traveling from Diyarbakır to Siirt crashed head-on with the truck coming from Batman.

“Because there was roadwork, traffic was diverted. As far as we can see, there is no inadequacy in terms of markings or signposting. Even if you build the most modern roads, when there is the human error factor, then accidents happen. Unfortunately, this accident is like a massacre. We are so sorry for the loss of 25 lives,” Governor Toprak said.

Toprak also expressed his condolences to the families of the victims.

The bus was full of students and the truck was loaded with bricks, Salat District Mayor Ferit Başak told NTV News Channel.

“There was a roadwork going on in the area and the accident was most probably caused by that,” he added.

Road repairs

Diyarbakır Governor Mustafa Toprak also answered reporters’ questions about roadwork. “Road construction has been ongoing for some time. However much we upgrade our roads, drivers have to be careful,” he said, adding that people had to be careful whatever the cause of this accident was.
“All the roads connecting Diyarbakır to surrounding provinces have been upgraded to double highways. After building the double highway, then road surfaces are covered. The old road is elevated before the covering of the surface,” Governor Toprak said.

Toprak also said they assume that the main cause of the accident was high speed.

“We understand there is speeding involved in this accident. It is not possible for the bus and the truck to collide and have so many deaths if they were traveling at a low speed. It was such a violent impact and at such high speed that half of the bus is gone.”

Meanwhile, police identified 21 out of the 25 people who died in the accident.The police was still trying to find out the identities of three people and a baby at the time Hürriyet daily news went to print.