"He kept trying to overtake cars": 15-year-old Alyona recounted the last minutes before the fatal crash

Fifteen-year-old Aliona, who was injured in a major road accident on the Odesa — Melitopol — Novoazovsk highway, spoke about the actions of the minibus driver immediately before the crash. The girl is currently at the Mykolaiv Regional Children’s Hospital in a serious but compensated condition.

As Aliona told reporters from Suspilne, on the morning of July 4 she was traveling by minibus to a holiday with her mother’s friend. The girl sat in the first row behind the driver by the window. According to the passenger, during the trip the driver repeatedly tried to overtake other vehicles.

“Our driver was constantly trying to overtake cars. At one point I look and a truck is already coming straight at us. The driver started to steer so we wouldn’t crash directly into the truck. We flipped over, people began to scream,” — said Aliona.

At the same time, the official version of the investigation concerns the actions of the Nissan Murano driver. According to the police, he began an overtaking maneuver without ensuring the safety of the maneuver and moved into the oncoming lane. To avoid a head-on collision with the crossover, the minibus driver sharply steered onto the shoulder. The vehicle overturned, went into the oncoming lane and collided with a Volvo truck.

As a result of the accident, 12 people died and six others were injured. Aliona’s words convey her own observations during the trip, while the final causes and the actions of each of the drivers must be established by the investigation and the court. After the minibus overturned the girl remained conscious. She recalls that she was trapped inside the cabin and saw the consequences of the tragedy.

“I am in shock that I survived all of this. And it is also painful to realize that the person my family had been talking to has died.”

Mikolaiv patrol officers Volodymyr Krasnoshchok and Artur Hobzei, who were traveling with their families to a holiday, came to the aid of the victims. Together with concerned people they opened the minibus’s rear doors, removed excess items and began extracting passengers. Aliona was found trapped between two people. A metal object resembling rebar had pierced her leg through and through. The police applied a tourniquet, secured the metal element and carefully extricated the girl. Artur Hobzei held her hand and asked questions to keep her conscious.

The injured girl was initially taken to the emergency hospital, and after stabilization was transferred to the regional children’s hospital. According to pediatric neurosurgeon Serhiy Chernyshov, the patient was diagnosed with polytrauma, a fracture of the cervical spine, multiple pelvic bone fractures, a fracture of the right femur, hemorrhagic and pain shock.

The girl needs to undergo at least two surgeries, and treatment and rehabilitation may last from six months to two years or longer. Relatives have organized a charity fundraiser, since the final cost of treatment is not yet known.

The Nissan Murano driver was taken into custody without the right to post bail. He is suspected of violating road safety rules that caused the deaths of people. According to the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.

Previously we wrote:

• Metal rod pierced her leg: police rescued the girl after a fatal crash
• After 12 deaths — remanded in custody: court made a decision regarding the Nissan driver
• One dangerous overtaking — 12 dead: Nissan driver was charged
• After Nissan’s maneuver into the oncoming lane near Mykolaiv the minibus overturned: 12 dead, the prosecutor’s office is investigating
• Twelve lives taken by the crash near Mykolaiv: July 5 declared a day of mourning
• Route Mercedes overturned and flew under a truck on the Odesa — Mykolaiv highway: first details about the tragedy