The hotel emerged after the fire! Tanju Özcan linked the fire department to his cousin.

Bolu Mayor Özcan stated at the fire site in Kartalkaya, where 76 people died, that they have been making great efforts since last night to extinguish the fire at the Grand Kartal Hotel and to reduce casualties.

"THE AUTHORITY AND DUTY OF INSPECTION BELONGS TO THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND TOURISM"

Recalling the statements of Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, Özcan said, "The authority and duty to inspect this hotel belong to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism because this hotel has been licensed by the Ministry."

"NO REPORT HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR THIS BUILDING BY THE BOLU MUNICIPALITY"

Özcan stated that the fire safety certificate issued by the Bolu Municipality Fire Department upon the hotel's application was dated November 22, 2007, and added, "Since then, no report has been issued by the Bolu Municipality stating that 'fire safety measures have been taken' for this building."

"THIS IS NOT WITHIN MUNICIPAL BOUNDARIES"

In response to a journalist's question about whether a request was made to the fire department to inspect the hotel, Özcan replied, "We do not have a routine inspection duty. This is not within our municipal boundaries. It is also not within the area where we have authority. This is a tourism area. The Ministry of Tourism is exclusively authorized here."

ACCESS TO THE MUNICIPALITY'S WEBSITE IS NOT POSSIBLE

On the other hand, the inaccessibility of the Bolu Municipality's website after the fire drew attention. It was observed that the website, which shares the municipality's authority and responsibility areas, was taken offline.

HE APPOINTED HIS COUSIN AS THE HEAD OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT

According to the authority and responsibility chart on the inaccessible site, the Bolu Fire Department is under the supervision of Sedat Gülener, who was appointed as Deputy Mayor by President Tanju Özcan and is the son of his uncle. Özcan previously defended his appointment of Gülener as deputy mayor by saying, "Sedat Gülener is my uncle's son. This is true; the whole of Bolu knows this. His being my uncle's son has nothing to do with his appointment."