 |
Casualties overshadow joy of Eid al-Fitr holiday
Many took to the road to visit relatives and friends during the Eid vacation, leading officials to take measures to prevent casualties stemming from traffic accidents. The measures, however, were inadequate, and accidents claimed the lives of dozens of people.
Eid al-Fitr, signaling the end of the holy month of Ramadan, is marked by three days of vacation. This year's Eid was preceded by a Saturday, adding up to four days off. With the chance to visit relatives for an extended period of time or to go on vacation at tourist resorts, many traveled to other cities, causing heavy traffic on the country's highways. The traffic situation went from bad to worse as a result of a sudden change in weather conditions: The Aegean, the Marmara and the Black Sea coastal regions experienced rain. The joy of Eid turned to pain for some families whose vacation ended early on the road.
In addition to heavy holiday traffic, driver error also compounded the accident figures.
In a pileup in central Çankırı, three were killed and two were injured on Saturday. The first day of Eid was a disaster for eastern Malatya, where a minibus overturned on a highway. Three people were killed and 23 were injured in the accident. The minibus was reportedly carrying villagers who wanted to visit the graves of their loves ones over the holiday. In northern Trabzon, two children in an automobile were pronounced dead at the scene when their vehicle collided with safety fences. Three others were wounded in the accident. A newly married couple was also killed on Sunday, in a car accident in northwestern Bursa. The couple was reportedly heading to Balıkesir to visit their families during the Eid vacation.
Authorities noted that the number of casualties in traffic accidents rises significantly during such vacations, calling for greater attention to and full compliance with traffic regulations. Drivers are particularly being cautioned to avoid drinking and driving as well as speeding. Among the cities hit by most fatal traffic accidents during this Eid were İstanbul, Çankırı, Kırıkkale, Niğde, Çorum, Sivas, Trabzon, Bilecik, Karaman, Antalya, Eskişehir and Manisa.
According to data from the Road Traffic and Safety Research Association, nearly 700 people died in Turkey between 2003 and 2008 as a result of traffic accidents during Eid al-Fitr. .
There are fears that the death toll for this year's holiday will rise, as people go to or return from vacation spots or relatives' homes.
Police officers tightened up traffic checks and warned drivers to be more careful when driving. They were advised to avoid any violation of rules because failure to obey safety regulations plays the greatest role in traffic accidents. Tired and sleepless drivers were cautioned and asked to take some rest in convenient places en route. Most traffic accidents in İstanbul and Ankara were caused by driver carelessness and slippery roads due to heavy rain.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BERİL DEDEOĞLU |  |
||
| Yemen and beyond | |||
| ABDULLAH BOZKURT |  |
||
| Turkey and Mexico: Distant yet so close | |||
| ABDÜLHAMİT BİLİCİ |  |
||
| Google kidnaps Gül! | |||
| İHSAN YILMAZ |  |
||
| The Egyptian elections, Islam and Islamists | |||
| MARKAR ESAYAN |  |
||
| There is need for a new initiative | |||
| EMRE USLU |  |
||
| Operational errors | |||
| HASAN KANBOLAT |  |
||
| Are Russian tourists being discouraged from visiting Turkey? | |||
| CHARLOTTE MCPHERSON |  |
||
| The modern ‘Great Game’: women’s role and status | |||
| KLAUS JURGENS |  |
||
| Back to the ’80s | |||
| KATHY HAMILTON |  |
||
| Random acts of violence | |||
| MERVE BÜŞRA ÖZTÜRK |  |
||
| Adding insult to injury in Uludere | |||
| NICOLE POPE |  |
||
| Shifting responsibility | |||
| YAVUZ BAYDAR |  |
||
| ‘Errorism’ | |||
| ORHAN MİROĞLU |  |
||
| ‘Strategic vision’ | |||
| ORHAN KEMAL CENGİZ |  |
||
| Turkey through Amnesty International’s eyes | |||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
