Turkish soccer club Samsunspor can consider themselves some of the luckiest folks after their team bus was struck by a train on Tuesday night. The Turkish club was on its way home following a match against another top-tier Turkish team, Kardemir Karabükspor when their team bus was struck on the rear by a passing train. Twenty-three-year-old defender Hakan Arslan and 24-year-old midfielder Serdar Özkan were injured in the accident, according to Today’s Zaman.
The bus driver spoke to the media regarding the accident:
Speaking to the press, bus driver Recep Terzi said there was no sign of an oncoming train at the railroad crossing where the accident occurred. He said he stepped on the gas at the last moment, preventing a worse collision. Terzi said that while entering the city, he had to cross over a grade crossing where trains pass and added: “It was midnight. The ramps were up when I was about to cross. While slowly crossing, I realized a train was approaching and had its lights off. I immediately accelerated. After I stepped on the gas, the train hit the left back wheel of the bus and pushed us aside. If I had not seen the train at the last second, it would have hit the middle of the bus and that would have led to great damage and could have even cost many lives. The players awoke in panic; many later said they were lucky to have survived.”
[youtube width=”640″ height=”390″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkAdDFFSAMs[/youtube]
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