Truck Collides With Minibus in Türkiye's Van Province, Killing 9 and Injuring 5

Nine people were killed and five others injured on Sunday evening, November 8, at around 7 p.m., when a truck collided with an Iranian-registered passenger minibus at kilometre 49 of the Van–Özalp highway in Van province, eastern Türkiye. Van Governor Ozan Balcı told Anadolu Agency that five women and four men were killed and three women and two men were injured and taken to hospital, with efforts to identify the victims ongoing. (Archive image: the scene of a road crash on a Turkish highway.)

Heavy rain made the road slippery

Balcı said that according to the initial findings of traffic teams and information from colleagues at the scene, the truck and the minibus collided because heavy rain had made the road slippery, and the minibus was completely destroyed in the impact. Teams from the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), the National Medical Rescue Team, the fire service, police and gendarmerie rushed to the scene; after the initial investigation and removal of the vehicles, the highway was reopened once road maintenance teams had cleared it.

Death toll revised up from seven to nine

The first official toll put the deaths at seven before it was revised up to nine. Governor Balcı, Provincial Gendarmerie Commander Brigadier General Mücahit Avkıran and Police Chief Aytekin Canıtez visited the scene, and Balcı offered his condolences to the families of the dead. As of publication, the authorities had not released the names of the dead and injured, and a detailed investigation was continuing.