Firefighting teams from five regions took part in rescuing and evacuating victims following the two chain-reaction crashes on the Trakia Motorway near Yambol. Fifteen teams comprising a total of 61 personnel worked at the scene, said Commissioner Ivan Dinev, director of the Regional Directorate for Fire Safety and Civil Protection in Yambol.
The report of the serious accident was received at 7:10 a.m. Teams from Yambol were initially dispatched, but after the scale of the incident was assessed, additional forces were called in from Burgas and Sliven, followed later by teams from Stara Zagora and Plovdiv.
The operation was hampered by the massive traffic jam that formed after the collisions. Because traffic was blocked, emergency medical teams were unable to reach all of the victims.
According to him, the firefighters responded quickly and the available equipment was sufficient, but the scale of the crash required more time for the rescue operation.
The National Investigative Service has taken over the investigation
Yambol Regional Governor Georgi Chalakov said there was no information that a report about fog had been made to the 112 emergency number shortly before the crashes. He noted that the National Investigative Service would determine whether a second inspection of the accident scene was necessary.
The truck driver whose vehicle, according to the investigation, triggered one of the chain-reaction crashes has been detained, said Senior Commissioner Dobrin Dimitrov, director of the Yambol Regional Directorate of the Interior Ministry. The detainee is a Romanian citizen and will be questioned as part of the pre-trial proceedings.
Sources: bta.bg