Thirty-four kids have been amongst 78 individuals killed within the lethal blaze, which occurred through the college holidays.
Printed On 1 Nov 2025
A Turkish court docket has sentenced 11 individuals to life in jail over a fireplace that killed 78 individuals at a lodge in a ski resort in northwest Turkiye’s Bolu mountains in January.
Amongst these sentenced on Friday have been Halit Ergul – the proprietor of the Grand Kartal Resort, which sits within the Kartalkaya ski resort about 295km (183 miles) east of Istanbul – in accordance with state-run broadcaster TRT Haber.
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The court docket additionally sentenced Ergul’s spouse, Emine Ergul, and their daughters, Elif Aras and Ceyda Hacibekiroglu – all of whom have been a part of the lodge’s administration crew.
The deadly blaze broke out overnight within the restaurant of the Grand Kartal on January 21, rapidly engulfing the 12-storey lodge, the place 238 visitors have been staying.
Thirty-four kids have been amongst 78 individuals killed within the fireplace, which occurred through the college holidays when many households from Ankara and Istanbul head to the Bolu mountains to ski.
One other 137 individuals suffered accidents through the incident, as panicked lodge visitors have been compelled to leap from home windows in the midst of the evening.
Additionally sentenced on Friday have been the lodge’s common supervisor, Emir Aras, in addition to the deputy mayor of Bolu, Sedat Gulener, and the director of one other lodge, Ahmet Demir, each of whom have been reportedly on the board of administrators of the corporate that owned the Grand Kartal.
There are a complete of 32 defendants within the trial, 20 of whom are in pre-trial detention, in accordance with TRT. It’s unclear when the remaining defendants will seem in court docket.
In complete, the convicted have been handed 34 aggravated life sentences for the 34 kids killed within the catastrophe. These within the courtroom greeted the announcement with applause.
The hearth sparked nationwide anger in Turkiye, with questions raised over security measures in place on the lodge after survivors stated no fireplace alarms went off through the incident, and so they needed to navigate smoke-filled corridors in full darkness.
Underneath strain to behave, Turkish authorities rapidly arrested nine people in reference to the blaze, whereas the federal government appointed six prosecutors to guide an investigation.
Talking to reporters outdoors the still-smoking lodge, Inside Minister Ali Yerlikaya pledged that these “liable for inflicting this ache is not going to escape justice”.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan introduced a day of nationwide mourning, as he served as a pallbearer at a funeral ceremony for the victims the next day.
