Around 18 people were on the bus when it overturned in Turkey on Saturday, Aug. 15
Credit: Sonsöz TV/YouTube
NEED TO KNOW
- Seven family members, including two children, died while traveling to an engagement party in Turkey on Saturday, Aug. 15
- The minibus overturned after a tire burst, injuring at least nine others, according to local officials
- Authorities have launched an investigation into the incident
Two children are among the seven family members killed when a minibus heading to an engagement party overturned in Turkey.
At around 9 a.m. local time on Saturday, Aug. 15, a minibus carrying 18 people lost control and overturned into a ditch in the Lice district, Turkish news outlets Cumhuriyet, Sözcü and Sabah reported.
Seven people died, including two at the scene and five others in hospital, and nine people were also injured, the Diyarbakır Governorship said in a translated news release.
“Immediately after the accident, medical teams were dispatched to the region and our injured citizens were transferred to hospitals,” said the governorship. “…The necessary investigation has been initiated regarding the accident. We offer our condolences to the families of those who lost their lives and wish a speedy recovery to the injured citizens.”
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The minibus was traveling from Diyarbakır to Muş for an engagement ceremony, per Cumhuriyet, Sözcü and Sabah. The driver’s identity has not been shared publicly at this time.
Diyarbakır Governor Murat Zorluoğlu said that “the minibus’s tire burst, causing it to overturn and roll down an embankment,” per Cumhuriyet.
The deceased victims are five siblings and their two nephews. They were identified as Veysi, Vedat, Feyziye, Özcan and Naide Saylikay as well as 3-year-old Zeyd Saylikay and Nazya Demirhan, per Sözcü.
According to the outlet, the victims were brought to Yeniköy Modern Cemetery in the Bağlar district after autopsies.
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The Diyarbakır Governorship wrote on X, “Following the traffic accident that occurred in our Lice district, our Governor Murat Zorluoğlu visited the injured citizens receiving treatment in hospitals and obtained information about their health conditions …The treatment processes of our injured are being closely monitored, and the judicial investigation initiated regarding the accident will be meticulously continued.”
Governor Zorluoğlu added on X, “I extend my condolences and prayers for patience to their families, loved ones, and all our fellow townspeople; may God grant mercy to the deceased citizens, and I wish a speedy recovery to those injured and still undergoing treatment.”
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