At least 11 killed and 46 injured in bus crash in Turkey

Vehicle taking people to ski resort crashes into trees on motorway in Eskisehir

Members of the emergency services inspect the scene of a passenger bus crash in Eskisehir, Turkey.  Photograph: Emrah Yasar/EPA
Members of the emergency services inspect the scene of a passenger bus crash in Eskisehir, Turkey. Photograph: Emrah Yasar/EPA

Eleven people were killed and 46 injured when a bus taking families on a skiing trip crashed in northwest Turkey, local officials said.

The bus, which was making an overnight journey from the capital Ankara to the western city of Bursa, crashed into trees on a motorway in the region of Eskisehir, its governor Ozdemir Cakacak told the Dogan news agency.

Roads were empty, and neither wet nor frozen, Mr Cakacak said.

The two drivers, who sustained slight injuries, were arrested and the cause of the crash is being investigated.

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Passengers were mainly families with children who were going to Bursa to spend upcoming half-term holidays at the nearby Uludag ski resort.

It is not yet known if any children were killed.

The state-run Anadolu Agency quoted the bus driver as telling police that he veered toward the side of the road to avoid what he thought was a stray dog.

Turkey has a poor road-safety record with more than a million accidents and 7,300 deaths in 2016, according to official statistics. – Guardian