Bus accident kills 5, injured 38 in northwestern Türkiye

Five people were killed and 38 others were injured when a bus plunged into a cliff in the northwestern Turkish province of Bursa on Sunday.

The bus was traveling from Kütahya province to Bursa’s Mudanya district, carrying a group of sightseers to the coastal town. Among the perished victims were the driver and four passengers. An investigation was launched into the cause of the accident which took place in a forested area near Bursa’s Inegöl district.

Last week, 34 people were killed in two accidents in Gaziantep and Mardin provinces in southern and southeastern Türkiye respectively, when trucks and a bus collided into vehicles earlier involved in minor accidents.

In Türkiye, traffic accidents claim the lives of hundreds every year. Data from the traffic department of the Turkish police show traffic accidents killed 920 people and injured another 127,619 within the first six months of 2022. The main cause of the accidents was driver error. A total of 88,000 accidents were reported across the country in the same period, involving nearly 70,000 cars and more than 25,000 motorcycles. The majority of accidents were in residential areas while the rest occurred in rural parts of the country with sparse populations or along highways. Driver error topped the list of causes of accidents, while some 10,316 accidents were the result of pedestrian errors.