Grand Kartal Hotel Fire in Bolu Kartalkaya Leads to Heavy Price Increases, Businesses Penalized
78 people lost their lives in the fire at Grand Kartal Hotel in Bolu Kartalkaya. Following this tragic incident, opportunists implemented exorbitant price increases of up to 100% on fire extinguishers and other firefighting equipment.
Immediately after the incident, in response to public outrage, the Ministry of Trade took action. The Ministry of Trade intervened by applying punitive measures to businesses engaging in price gouging following complaints and allegations.
Penalties Imposed
Fatih Uysan, Press Counselor at the Ministry of Trade, stated in a press release that inspections were ongoing and necessary punitive measures were being imposed on businesses engaging in price gouging.
Uysan emphasized, “Necessary punitive measures are being applied to businesses engaging in price gouging.” Inspection teams from the Ministry of Trade are continuing their examinations of fire safety materials to ensure the public’s safety.
Prior to the fire disaster in Bolu, the price of a mini fire extinguisher, which was 414 TL, had risen to 735 TL after the fire. Similarly, exorbitant price increases of up to 100% were observed in other fire safety products such as fire blankets, fire extinguishing sprays, and smoke detectors.
