Antalya: At least 9 killed after bus plunges 50ft into ditch | World | News

Nine people have been killed after a bus rolled off a road at a holiday hotspot in Turkey, a senior official said. The vehicle skidded down an embankment in the country’s Antalya province on Sunday while driving on a highway slip road in Dosemealti.

Shocking pictures captured the bus, operated by the Buzlu company and traveling on the Tekirdag–Antalya route, lying on its side after plunging nearly 50 feet into the ditch. Provincial Governor Hulusi Sahin said 21 people were injured, seven of whom  critically. Some of the passengers were thrown from the bus, local DHA news agency said. 

The popular holiday destination has been hit by a deluge of rain in recent days. 

Mr Sahin claimed: “The ground was wet and there was also fog in the area. It’s not a place to speed, but it seems the bus was speeding.” 

The driver reportedly lost control of the steering wheel while going through heavy fog on the slippery road, local media reports. 

Emergency services rushed to the scene, including medical teams, firefighters, disaster response units, the gendarmerie, and the police.

Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc confirmed that a judicial investigation had been launched into the incident, with a deputy chief prosecutor and two public prosecutors assigned to the case.

In a separate incident also happened in Turkey, seven people were killed and five injured in a collision involving two cars. The crash occurred in the neighboring province of Burdur, on the Antalya–Isparta highway near the Kazak Tunnel. 

The fire department, 112 Emergency Medical Services, and gendarmerie teams were all dispatched to the scene.