A major road accident involving more than fifty vehicles has occurred in Bulgaria near the city of Yambol in dense fog, killing at least 10 people and injuring many others, the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency reported.
According to the Interior Ministry, several dozen trucks and passenger cars collided on the Thrace motorway at around 7 a.m. local time. A staff has been set up to deal with the aftermath of the accident, and a large-scale rescue operation is underway.
The government press service reported that, in connection with the tragedy, Prime Minister Rumen Radev canceled all events in connection with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's visit to Varna, except for the negotiations, as well as the government meeting. The prime minister sent the government plane and military transport aircraft to Burgas to transfer the injured to hospitals in Sofia. At present, the injured are being sent to hospitals in the cities of Sliven, Yambol and Burgas.
This incident shows how quickly weather can change everything on a motorway. The collision that began at 7 a.m. became a national-scale crisis within a single morning, with dozens of dead and hundreds affected.
Noteworthy is the speed of the government's response: the prime minister canceled not only the meeting but also the planned events with the European Commission president, which is rare in such situations. This suggests that Sofia views the accident not as an ordinary road incident but as a serious emergency requiring the full mobilization of state resources.
The most important question now is why the motorway was not closed or traffic restricted in advance under dense fog conditions. The answer to this question will determine whether such a tragedy will recur or not.
