Turkey's new ski jump complex collapses in landslide

A flagship modern ski jump complex in Turkey has collapsed in a landslide just three years after it opened, local media reported today.
It was the latest mishap to befall much-vaunted construction projects being developed under Turkey's strongman Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The two ski jumps at Kiremitlik Hill in the eastern province of Erzurum were destroyed yesterday in the landslide, and surrounding areas damaged, television images showed.
Officials from the regional sports directorate said the facility had been evacuated for safety reasons and the national team ski jump team had been barred from training there since the landslide began last weekend, the Milliyet newspaper reported.

Erol Mehmet Yarar, head of the Turkish Skiing Federation, said heavy rains that hit the region appear to have caused the disaster.
But he added that the circumstances would be made clear in an expert report.

The facility is situated at the base of Palandoken Mountain, known as the best in Turkey for skilled skiers.
The complex consists of two jumping towers as well as smaller slopes for training purposes.
It was inaugurated in 2011 by Erdogan and hosted the Winter Universiade that year.
Erdogan is seeking to leave his mark on Turkey with a succession of expensive grand projects but they have on occasion suffered mishaps.

Early this month, Turkey's much-vaunted high speed rail link between the main cities of Ankara and Istanbul suffered a setback before its official opening when a train crashed in testing.
In October, rail passengers using a new tunnel under the Bosphorus in Istanbul had to walk part of their journey when an electricity failure halted services just a day after its grand opening.