Saryagash, Kazakhstan UKJNews – A young driver's late-night joyride turned into a holiday mishap when he accidentally knocked over the town's main 40-foot Christmas tree in the central square.
The incident occurred around 3 a.m. on December 24, 2025, in the quiet streets of Saryagash, a town in Kazakhstan's Turkestan Region. CCTV footage captured a VAZ-2105 Lada (a classic Soviet-era car) speeding and attempting to drift circles around the brightly decorated tree. After several laps, the driver lost control, slamming into the base and causing the massive tree to topple over dramatically.
The driver fled the scene immediately after the crash, but police quickly identified him using security cameras. He was tracked down, fined for dangerous driving, and had his vehicle impounded. In a twist of redemption, the young man personally repaired and re-erected the damaged tree, restoring it to its upright position before Christmas celebrations could be ruined.
Local authorities confirmed it was an accident caused by reckless driving, with no evidence of intent or any other motivation. The driver admitted fault and promised to avoid such stunts in the future.
While viral social media posts falsely claimed the incident involved deliberate vandalism by "Muslim men" targeting the tree due to anti-Christmas sentiment, official reports and police statements debunk this entirely. Kazakhstan, a secular country with a Muslim-majority population, widely celebrates New Year festivities (including decorated trees as a cultural tradition from Soviet times), and there was no religious or ideological angle here.
Fortunately, no one was injured, and the tree was back standing tall in time for the holidays – proving that even a Grinch-like crash couldn't dim the festive lights in Saryagash.
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