Death toll in traffic accidents across Turkey rises to 86 on 8th day of public holiday

ISTANBUL – Doğan News Agency

The death toll in traffic accidents across Turkey rose to 86 on the 8th day of the extended 10-day long  public holiday.

Some 384 people were injured in road accidents during the same period. 

A total of 16 people were killed and 16 were injured on the 8th day of the public holiday alone in different accidents across Turkey.

In first eight days of public holiday traffic accidents continued to occur due to excessive speed and carelessness across Turkey despite tightened security measurements.

One of most recent deadly accidents occurred in the Marmara province of Balıkesir around noon on Sept. 2, with four people being killed and three injured after two vehicles collided on the Balıkesir–İzmir Highway.
 
With this accident, the death toll in accidents across Turkey rose from 73 to 86 in one day.

A warning to vacationers was recently released by the police headquarters in the northwestern province of Bolu, urging people to hit the road before the end of the holiday.  

Deputy Police Commissioner Aydın Aksoy said that during the holiday they were performing effective and intensive supervision to minimize driver-induced accidents and guarantee travel safely.

“We are conducting informative studies for our citizens who will return home. We urge them not to take the road on the last day of the holiday and should take 10 to 15-minute breaks to increase their concentration every 2 or 3 hours,” Aksoy added.

In a first this year, Turkey’s Interior Ministry has been sending warnings to drivers via text message to their mobile phones when they stop on roads that are particularly prone to accidents. The message reads: “You are on a road where a high number of fatal accidents occur on holidays. Please abide by the rules. Do not exceed the speed limit. Fasten all seatbelts. Eid Mubarak.”

The ministry has also used Twitter to warn drivers, especially of heavy vehicles and buses, about road accidents.

The Eid al-Adha (Feast of Sacrifice) holiday has been extended to 10 days in Turkey, coinciding with Aug. 30 Victory Day, Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdağ said on Aug. 15, speaking after a cabinet meeting.