Eight people, including a baby, were killed and another 33 were injured after a passenger-filled bus crashed and caught fire during an accident that occurred yesterday in western Turkey. The tragedy occurred as millions of travelers began returning home on Sunday at the end of the nine-day holiday marking the Feast of Sacrifice, causing heavy traffic congestion on roads, at airports, and at major transportation hubs across the country.
The accident occurred around 1:40 a.m. on Saturday night into Sunday morning in the Sarayköy district of the Turkish province of Denizli, on the highway connecting Denizli with Aydın, near the Tırkaz area. According to the news agency DHA, the vehicle, driven by 50-year-old Mustafa Fevzi Merdin, was traveling between the cities of Izmir and Antalya when the driver lost control and crashed into the safety barriers. As a result of the force of the impact, a fire broke out on the bus, which exacerbated the tragedy and was recorded by several drivers traveling on the highway.
It was other drivers who witnessed the accident who alerted the emergency services; medical teams, rescue teams from AFAD (Disaster and Emergency Management Agency) and UMKE (National Medical Rescue Team), as well as gendarmes, police, and firefighters, immediately rushed to the scene. Following their intervention, the flames were brought under control and eventually extinguished, and medical personnel confirmed the deaths of eight victims, including a baby, while another 33 people were injured.
The injured were transported by ambulance to nearby hospitals after receiving first aid at the scene of the accident. Turkish authorities identified the eight fatalities as the driver, Mustafa Fevzi Merdin, and the passengers Merve Erik, Hayriye Arıkan, Zehra Eyiol, Fatma Kartal, Kyrgyz citizen Gültilay Bığa, as well as Civan Şen, father of a 9-month-old baby, Eyüp Miraç Şen. It has been reported that, at the time of the accident, Civan Şen covered his 9-month-old son with his body in an attempt to protect him.
Roads and airports overwhelmed during the post-holiday return
This tragic accident occurred during the return rush following the long 9-day holiday weekend marking the Feast of Sacrifice, one of Turkey’s most important Muslim holidays. On Sunday, long lines formed on the main return routes heading to Istanbul, especially on the highway that crosses the northern province of Bolu, where in some sections vehicle speeds dropped to just 20 kilometers per hour.
Significant traffic jams were also reported on the Trans-European Motorway (TEM) and the Istanbul-Izmir Motorway, mainly due to travelers returning from sun and beach destinations in the Aegean and Mediterranean regions. As for air travel, Istanbul Airport also reached record levels of activity. According to official data, this international airport recorded 289,000 passengers and 1,748 flights in a single day, marking the busiest day in its entire history.
The influx of passengers also caused severe congestion at Istanbul’s main intercity bus terminal, where transport companies were forced to add extra services to meet the high demand. The preliminary toll of road casualties during the long holiday weekend indicates that, on the eighth day of the holiday alone — Saturday — traffic accidents across the country caused 24 deaths and left dozens injured.
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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