Nikolay Popov, the father of 12-year-old Siyana, who died at the end of March in an accident near the village of Telish, published an open letter to Bulgarian builders, designers and companies that build roads in Bulgaria. The letter was sent a few hours after the "Road Infrastructure" Agency took action due to signals of poor-quality asphalt in Northwestern Bulgaria.
"I am a father. One of those who can no longer hug his child. I lost my daughter. On the road. A road that one of you has repaired. A road that is in a tragic state," Nikolay Popov begins his message.
The grieving parent recalls the shocking statistics - in the last three years alone, 51 more people have died on the section where his child died compared to the period before the traffic was redirected from the "Botevgrad - Mezdra" route.
"The roads you repair and build are not just strips of asphalt. Your children, your wives, your parents, your loved ones also drive on them. Tomorrow, one of them could be in the car," Popov explains in his letter.
He emphasizes that everything has a price, but life has a value that is not measured in centimeters of asphalt or in savings on materials. "The cup has run over. We can no longer die on poor-quality repairs. We can no longer accept two centimeters of asphalt laid for a gallery, not for safety," is categorical Siyana's father.
The open letter was published in the context of the scandal with poor-quality asphalt in Northwestern Bulgaria, which road expert Diana Rusinova signaled with a video showing how newly laid asphalt is peeled off with bare hands. RIA took the case into its own hands and began an inspection of the contractor for the repair work.
"Money for asphalt is for asphalt - not for luxury, properties and limousines. Work. Earn. This is your right. But leave behind roads that protect life, not take it away," Nikolay Popov concludes his request.
He states that people will support and respect those who work qualitatively, because life is priceless. "And no profit is worth as much as a child's heart that no longer beats," ends with "With respect and pain, A father".
12-year-old Siyana Popova died on March 31, 2025 in an accident near the village of Telish, when the car she was traveling in with her grandfather was hit by a heavy truck.