Two people have been killed and seven Polish tourists injured after a coach carrying 45 Polish holidaymakers collided with a minibus on a motorway in western Turkey. The accident occurred near the city of Izmir on Friday, 9 October, when both vehicles left the road and plunged down an embankment. Polish officials have confirmed that the two people who died were Turkish citizens travelling in the other vehicle, while one injured Polish tourist remains in hospital with a broken leg.
The crash happened at approximately 2.30pm local time on the Aydın–Izmir motorway near Germencik, in Turkey’s Aydın province.
The coach was travelling from Izmir towards the coastal resort of Didim, carrying tourists who had arrived at Izmir airport.
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The collision sent both vehicles through roadside safety barriers and onto lower ground beside the motorway, prompting a major emergency response.
Turkish authorities dispatched ambulances, firefighters and gendarmerie officers to the scene.
Two Turkish brothers killed in the collision
The two fatalities were travelling in the smaller vehicle.
Turkish news agency Demirören (DHA) identified the victims as Ali Şevket Yavuz, 58, who was driving the minibus, and his brother Orhan Yavuz, 65.
Both men died in the crash.
According to the Turkish agency’s initial reconstruction, the minibus was attempting to enter the main carriageway from the motorway’s emergency lane when it collided with the approaching tourist coach.
The impact sent both vehicles through the safety barriers and down the roadside embankment.
However, the precise sequence of events remains under investigation, and Turkish authorities have not announced a final determination of responsibility.
The Anadolu Agency’s initial report also confirmed that the minibus driver and his brother had died, while the coach driver and several passengers required medical attention.
Seven Polish tourists injured, one remains in hospital
Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Saturday that seven Polish citizens travelling on the coach had been injured.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Maciej Wewiór told Polish Radio that the injuries were generally minor, although one passenger had suffered a broken leg.
That person remained in hospital on Saturday, while the other injured Polish tourists had been discharged.
Speaking separately to TOK FM, Wewiór said that all Polish passengers were under the care of their travel organiser and that Polish consular services were monitoring the situation.
The ministry confirmed that neither of the two fatalities was Polish.
Initial Turkish media reports had given a higher injury figure of nine people, while the Polish Foreign Ministry subsequently confirmed seven injured Polish citizens. The figures were reported using different descriptions of those injured, and a complete reconciliation of the casualty totals has not been published.
Tourists transferred to another coach
The Polish holidaymakers had been travelling from Izmir airport towards Didim, an Aegean coastal resort popular with international visitors.
Following the collision, emergency services treated those injured and transported patients requiring hospital care.
Passengers who were able to continue their journey were transferred to another coach.
According to the Turkish news agency’s account of the rescue operation, the replacement vehicle took the tourists onwards to Didim.
Polish consular officials have remained in contact with the travel organiser and local authorities.
The Foreign Ministry has not publicly identified the tour operator involved.
Turkish authorities investigate cause
Turkish prosecutors have opened an investigation into the circumstances of the collision.
The inquiry is expected to examine how the two vehicles came into contact and why both left the motorway.
Early reporting focused on the movement of the smaller vehicle from the emergency lane, but those accounts remain preliminary.
No final investigative findings have been announced.
The collision has left two Turkish families grieving and disrupted the holidays of dozens of Polish travellers.
For the Polish passengers, the immediate priority has been medical care and assistance from the travel organiser, while Turkish investigators continue working to establish how the fatal crash occurred.
