Striking claim regarding the hotel fire in Bolu: 'They entered the fire station and burned documents'

Testimony from plaintiffs and witnesses continues on the 8th day of the trial involving 32 defendants, 19 of whom are under arrest, regarding the tragic fire at the Bolu Grand Kartal Hotel, which resulted in 78 deaths and 133 injuries. Employees who experienced the night of the fire at the hotel provided testimony to the court as witnesses.

"THEY ENTERED THE FIRE STATION AND BURNED DOCUMENTS"

Testifying as a witness in court, AK Party Council Member Erol Özak alleged that a few days after the fire, Bolu Deputy Mayor Sedat Gülener and another person accompanying him burned documents. Özak said, "A few days after the fire, a number called me. They stated that two people had come to the fire station and entered running. They asked, 'Will you give a statement for me?' One of these two people was Sedat Gülener; I don't know the other one exactly. They ran inside and burned documents. Someone told me these things over the phone. It was stated in my previous testimony that I said someone named Furkan called and that Sedat and Kenan Bey were trying to delete camera recordings. Furkan was on duty at the fire station. I don't know if Furkan is a friend of the person who called me. I am also a municipal council member. The person who called me reached me somehow. I only gave a statement so that the camera recordings would come out," he said.

"I DID NOT SEE SEDAT GÜLENER AND KENAN COŞKUN BURNING ANY DOCUMENTS"

Following the allegations made by Erol Özak in court, Furkan Berk Aydoğdu, whose name was mentioned in the statement, also appeared in court as a witness. Aydoğdu stated that he did not see Sedat Gülener and Kenan Coşkun burning documents. Aydoğdu said, "I know Erol Özak from the industrial zone. I did not call him. I know Sedat Gülener and Kenan Coşkun. I have been a firefighter for 7 months. I received 2 months of training. I did not see Sedat Gülener and Kenan Coşkun burning any documents or anything like that. I don't know why Erol Özak gave such a statement. Erol Özak and I have mutual acquaintances in the industrial circle. He also has an employee. Serdar, he is my friend. Erol Bey did not tell me any such thing. Other than today, I have never come face to face with him. On the morning of the third day after the fire, Sedat Gülener and Kenan Coşkun came separately. They congratulated the fire department personnel and left," he said.

"NO ONE COULD STAND IT HERE"

Reacting to the fact that no one accepted responsibility, plaintiff Güngör Gültekin said, "I am at a loss for words. I almost feel like the guilty one. We are devastated with our children. The fish rots from the head; for me, they are all guilty. If I were to try to tell you what I went through, no one could stand it here. 'No, I'm not guilty,' 'No, the hotel isn't mine.' Give me that hotel then. What does it mean to be buried at such a young age? Is there no notification at all? Would I leave you behind while I was escaping? Will I wait like this until I die? I want justice. Let it not go on for years, let justice be served as soon as possible. What is this? We are dealing with waiters. It is clear who is guilty. We are being tormented. What do I know about an electrician or a kitchen worker? The culprit is clear. My grandchild carried the coffin of their sibling. I'm tired; I will wait until the end of my life. They worked honestly, they wanted to come and have a vacation at the hotel. They had dreams, all of them were destroyed. I am waiting for when I will die with tears in my eyes. 'No, I don't have a signature,' 'No, it's not my duty.' They hire a hundred lawyers, they say, 'We are taking one hundred thousand liras.' Be honest for once. Lawyers, what are you defending them for? Do not defend them for money. I raised my children, our lives were ruined in one night. How long will I wait? 'No, he didn't turn on the electricity,' 'No, he didn't turn off the water.' The whole hotel is already defective. They get out completely unscathed. My lion-hearted son-in-law and daughter, if they had called out, they could have been saved very easily. Everyone says, 'I don't know.' We were buried alive. We just want justice. It would be stupid not to be a complainant anyway. What kind of question is that? My daughter came here alive, they put my daughter in a vehicle for poultry," she expressed.

"NO FIRE DRILL TRAINING WAS PROVIDED"

Describing what he experienced on the night of the fire, witness Görkem Ustaoğlu, the Reception Chief at the Grand Kartal Hotel, said that they were not provided with fire drill training. Ustaoğlu said, "I started as a receptionist at Gazelle on September 1st. Then I moved to Grand Kartal. We were on the second floor on the night of the incident. We were chatting around 2 o'clock. We went to sleep around 2:30. Our friend Buğra came to the room around 3 o'clock and woke us up. We grabbed some things and went out through the staff stairs. We tried to go to the third floor by passing through the laundry door. Almost all the staff were there. Neslihan said, 'We can't get out from here, let's go out from the ski room.' Someone opened the door there, and we went out. When we got out around 3:20, flames were rising on the restaurant floor. Afterwards, we tried to help people outside. We didn't hear an alarm sound. There was no sprinkler system. There was nothing to be activated by us at the reception. There was a system in Zeki Yılmaz's room. One day it just started beeping, the technical team came and turned it off. I don't know if that thing ringing in Zeki Bey's room was an alarm system or not. We didn't have any customer records on hand, they were all registered in the system. No fire drill training was provided. I don't know if there was a fire response team at the Grand Kartal Hotel. The night kitchen staff prepares breakfast, but I don't know if there was any operation in the place where the fire started. When I went to the front, I saw the night receptionist Yiğithan Burak. And there was security guard Mehmet, I saw him. I saw Emir Aras from the management around 4 o'clock. I saw him going up the stairs on the left side of the hotel. I saw Elif Aras and Ceyda Hacıbekiroğlu. Batuhan was with me. Elif Aras said, 'You go to the back and look, can you help?' I saw Emine Murtezaoğlu Güler inside the Kartal Hotel," he said.

"I DON'T KNOW IF THE FIRE ALARM WAS TURNED OFF"

Fatma Koca, who worked as laundry staff at the hotel and testified as a witness via the SEGBİS system, described what she experienced on the night of the fire. Koca said, "I was staying on the first floor. It was 2:45 when we went out. Tuni, Semra, and Nisa were with me. When asked, 'Did you hear Zeki Yılmaz say, "Wake up the staff, do not notify the customers"?' she replied, 'I heard it a day or two later.' I don't know if the fire alarm was turned off. When I went out, I saw Emine Hanım and Ceyda Hanım. I saw them around 3:40. I think they knew about it beforehand. They were staying on the 6th floor, I don't know how they got out. I know Hüseyin and Bahadır as electricians. I don't know the kitchen staff by name. I only know Reşat Usta. Tuni Urhan had spoken on social media, I heard what Zeki Bey said there," she said.

"THERE WAS NO SPRINKLER SYSTEM"

Stating that the sprinkler system at the hotel was not working and that they did not receive fire training, receptionist Elanur Gönültaş said in her witness statement, "I was at the reception part of the hotel. Derya, one of our friends, woke me up by knocking on the door. They said there was a fire. I thought it was a small fire, but when I went out into the hallway, there was a lot of smoke. We tried to go up to the third floor, we turned back because of the smoke. We went out through the ski room. Friends on the first floor helped. I didn't hear an alarm. I had been working at Grand Kartal for 2 months. Zeki Bey is at the reception first, Adnan Bey is there, and our teammates are there. Fire training and drills were not conducted at the hotel. I never saw an occupational safety specialist. There was no sprinkler system either. Elif Hanım and Ceyda Hanım were usually at the hotel. We were dealing with Zeki Bey and Adnan Bey. I didn't see a fire alarm button at the reception. There was no public address system at the reception. White Fox opened about a month after the season started. I know that the staff came and started working about a month before the fire," she stated.

"I HAVE NO KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE INSPECTION"

Stating that she had no knowledge of the inspections, witness Semra İke said in her statement via the SEGBİS system, "I was at the hotel on the day of the fire, I was sleeping. We were on the ground floor. When we woke up, I grabbed a jacket and went out through the ski room. My niece Nisa İke was with me. I was a floor supervisor at Grand Kartal. This year would have been my third year. The General Manager is Zeki Bey. I know that Emir Aras is Halit Bey's son-in-law," she said.

When asked, "Did you hear Zeki Yılmaz say, 'Do not notify the customers, wake up the staff'?" İke replied, "No," and added, "I don't know if there was an alarm system or a sprinkler system. The staff wouldn't smoke inside, they would usually go outside. I know Zeki Yılmaz as the general manager. I have no knowledge about the inspection," she stated.

"I DID NOT SEE ANYONE FROM THE MANAGEMENT"

Stating that she did not see anyone from the management outside the hotel during the fire, floor attendant Hasip İke said in his witness statement, "I was a floor attendant at Grand Kartal. I was on duty on the 6th floor. I heard there was a fire around 2:30. I woke up to the sounds in the hallway. We tried to get out directly in a panic. They knocked on the door, but we had already woken up from the sounds. I went out through the garage door. When I went out, I saw the employees. I worked at Grand Kartal for about a month and a half," he said.

When asked, "Did you hear Zeki Yılmaz's words on the night of the fire, 'Do not wake up the customers, wake up the staff, intervene in the fire'?" Hasip İke replied, "I didn't hear it," and said, "We were already psychologically shattered, everyone was in different places. I didn't see anyone from the management at the hotel exit," he said.