They narrowly escaped the chain collision in Van! The passengers kissed the driver one by one.

In two separate traffic accidents involving 35 vehicles on the Van-Erciş highway early yesterday morning, a bus driver's last-minute maneuver saved the lives of dozens of people due to heavy fog and hidden ice.

HE PREVENTED A GREATER TRAGEDY WITH HIS CALMNESS

In the first seconds of the accident, bus driver Harun Bucak's calm control of the steering wheel and maneuvering onto the sidewalk prevented a greater tragedy. After the accident, Bucak opened the bus doors to evacuate the passengers. The terrifying moments were captured by the internal camera of the bus belonging to the Van Metropolitan Municipality, which was on the Muradiye route. The footage showed another vehicle crashing into the bus as passengers were evacuating. Additionally, moments of another vehicle being involved in the accident about a minute after the second crash were also recorded.

"THE PASSENGERS KISSED ME ONE BY ONE"

Expressing that the road was not visible due to fog and that he was moving slowly due to hidden ice, Bucak said, "I steered the bus onto the sidewalk to avoid crashing into the vehicles involved in the accident ahead. When I got onto the sidewalk, my vehicle stopped, and there was no problem for the passengers. I also got off later."

Stating that the passengers thanked him after getting off the bus, Bucak said, "The passengers told me, 'If we had gotten into the accident, it would have been very bad. God bless you.' They kissed me one by one. After we got off, three vehicles crashed into the bus from behind. One vehicle also rolled over. Thank God we escaped this tragedy with only injuries. There could have been greater loss of life." he said.

WHAT HAPPENED?

Between the 35th and 40th kilometers of the Van-Erciş highway, two separate chain collisions involving 35 vehicles occurred due to heavy fog and hidden ice. In the accident, Bediha Ertuğrul (47) lost her life, and 83 people were injured. Of the injured receiving treatment in hospitals, 53 have been discharged, while 9 are in intensive care and 21 are still being treated in wards.