Dozens of people have been injured and at least six are dead following a tour bus accident in Turkey on Thursday, August 6, 2015. The accident took place on a roadway just outside the city of Denizli in the southwestern region of the nation. The bus reportedly had around 40 passengers on board at the time of the accident, 27 of whom were hurt in the crash. Almost all people on board were tourists from Russia, Lithuania, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Ukraine, and four of the six fatalities were Russian nationals.
Twenty passengers are reported to have been hospitalized following the accident and are now receiving treatment in area medical centers in Denizli and Antalya. The extent of their injuries is not known, nor is it known whether any of these individuals is expected to survive. The bus was owned and operated by Kilit Global, a subsidiary of Russian touring and travel company Tez Tours. Turkey is a popular vacation destination for many people in eastern Europe, including Russia and the former Soviet nations.
The accident occurred when the bus overturned while traveling on a hillside road, causing the bus to plummet. One tourist who survived the crash described people both living and dead being ejected from bus windows as the vehicle crashed, narrowly missing a nearby ravine on its way down. It is not known whether driver fatigue may have played a role in this crash, nor has any word been released on whether the driver may have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the accident.
Officials from the Russian Federation’s embassy in Turkey have been sent to the region where the crash took place to launch an investigation and offer support following the incident. According to data published by the World Health Organization, Turkey averages 10,000 fatalities due to traffic accidents each year.