Demerdzhiev after the tragedy on Trakia Motorway: "Road owners must wake up"

It is unacceptable for a heavy truck to pass almost without resistance through the guardrails of a motorway and enter the oncoming lane. This was stated by Interior Minister "Ivan Demerdzhiev" a day after the horrific crash near Yambol, in which two children and one man died. He emphasized that the Ministry of the Interior is expected to control traffic, but the time has come for the "road owners" – the municipalities and the state – to "wake up".

"There are disturbing circumstances in this crash. For a truck without a load to pass with ease through the guardrails is, to me, unacceptable. So the road owners must wake up and take the necessary measures. We will call upon them to do so with warning letters. If there is no reaction, we will proceed to refer the matter to the prosecutor's office for criminal negligence," stated "Demerdzhiev".

The threat of referring the prosecutor's office regarding poor road infrastructure is not a new approach for the Ministry of the Interior. So far, however, there is no publicly known case of charges being filed for the poor condition of a road before a tragedy has occurred. By law, responsibility for the pavement, guardrails, and facilities lies with the owner of the road, but practice shows numerous examples of "total irresponsibility". Among the most shocking was the case of the woman who died in a tunnel on the "Hemus" motorway, killed by a falling lamp – the case regarding this incident has still not reached a result.

The driver of the semi-truck that caused the heavy crash on Wednesday is detained for 24 hours, and his arrest will be extended by a prosecutor's order, after which permanent detention will also be requested. At this stage, investigators cannot categorically point out the cause of the incident – a technical and auto-technical expertise has been commissioned. It is known that the truck was carrying grain and was returning empty towards Sofia. In the area of the 290th km of "Trakia" motorway, the driver lost control, swept away the guardrails, entered oncoming traffic, and hit a car head-on.

During the impact, two 9-year-old boys from the "Slavia" football club academy and the father of one of them died. Two more people – the coach at the "Slavia" youth academy, "Ivan Terziyski", and his wife – were seriously injured. The woman is in critical condition and her life is in danger. The truck driver is unharmed, and his alcohol and drug tests are negative.

After the tragedy, "Slavia" announced a month of mourning. The passengers in the car were traveling to a tournament in Albena when the fatal collision occurred.

"The wife of coach Ivan Terziyski is in very serious condition. May God be with her. But what I saw in the footage freezes me. This truck does not have even a gram of braking distance. It crashes directly into the car. Its braking distance starts after it crosses the guardrails. And it crosses them like waffles. Where is the responsibility of these people? Two little angels went to heaven, and the victims on the roads are becoming more and more," said "Slavia" president "Ventseslav Stefanov" to bTV.

According to him, the truck was clearly not moving at a normal speed and this further sharpens questions about the control of heavy-goods traffic: "Trucks cannot be moving in the third lane. Whatever responsibility the company and the truck driver bear, no one will bring these children back," added "Stefanov".

The grave incident once again brings to the agenda the topics of road infrastructure quality, the effectiveness of guardrails, and real control over the movement of heavy-goods vehicles on motorways. While expert assessments seek the exact cause of the crash, the words of the Interior Minister and the relatives of the deceased sound as a warning that without real measures on the roads, such tragedies will continue.