The key facts
- On October 10, a crash involving a HOWO truck occurred in the village of Neftchilar: officially 3 dead, witnesses say about 10 dead, one resident counted 16 people injured in intensive care
- Residents link the accidents to the steep pass, brake failures in trucks, and the narrow road
- A criminal case has been opened under Part 3 of Article 266 of the Criminal Code; authorities previously announced the allocation of 83 billion soums for lowering the pass, but the work was not completed
The October 10 Crash and Disagreements over the Death Toll
In the village of Neftchilar, Bulakbashin district of the Andijan region, part of Konchilar street passes through a mountain pass. According to local residents, heavy trucks loaded with sand and gravel descend from the pass at high speed, their brakes fail, and the road is narrow and of poor quality; shops extend onto the sidewalks. According to official data, three people died in the October 10 crash involving a HOWO truck. However, witnesses claim there were about ten dead. Fathiddin Samiyev, a resident whose wife was in the crash, said he counted 16 people brought to intensive care after the accident. According to him, his wife has a broken leg and ribs broken in 15 places, her head and face were injured, and she needs special metal for her leg costing more than 7 million soums. He himself is a Group I disability pensioner, on dialysis three times a week, and the family lived on his wife's salary as a schoolteacher.
Testimonies of Those Who Lost Loved Ones
Sanobar Gofurova said her younger son died on June 28, 2024, when a HOWO truck descended the pass at speed with failed brakes and hit him. He was 34 years old and left behind two daughters; his wife was pregnant, and the child was born prematurely disabled in the eighth month. The woman added that a neighbor, a schoolteacher who cared for her disabled husband, is in intensive care after the recent crash. Abdukodir Nishonov reported that six years ago he lost two grandsons, aged 11 and 3, because of a truck: the vehicle coming down from the pass hit the children, crashed into the fence of a house and a gas distribution point, and the driver died. He asks either to lower the pass or to ban truck traffic on this street. Some families who lost loved ones on October 10 refused to speak about the incident.
Authorities: Everything Comes Down to Funding
According to local residents, about three years ago the district governor held a meeting and announced the allocation of 83 billion soums for lowering the pass; the work began but was not completed. Beruniy Tojimatov, head of the road administration of Bulakbashin district, said in a phone conversation that every year at the beginning of the year the administration submits a proposal to lower the pass to the regional road administration. According to him, there is no alternative road, and trucks go through the pass to the cement plant; the roads are narrow, and widening them would require resettling residents. Currently, he said, shops along the road are being demolished, and the pass can be lowered if funding is allocated.
Investigation
Regarding the October 10 crash, the investigative department of the district police department of Bulakbashin district has opened a criminal case under Part 3 of Article 266 of the Criminal Code (violation of traffic rules or operation of vehicles resulting in loss of life). Initial investigative actions are underway.
