Doctor in Romania: “The steering wheel got blocked during the overtaking,” one of the injured told me

The doctor, Dimitris Koukoulas, who was with the injured from the start, relayed the testimony of one of the survivors, who is in better health and described that during the overtaking, the steering wheel got blocked, causing the driver to lose control of the van.

“The patient, who is in better health, told me that just before the fatal crash, something happened during the overtaking, and the lane assist system was activated, which blocked the steering wheel,” he emphasized, adding, “That’s why the driver couldn’t regain control of the vehicle’s direction.”

According to the doctor, the patient is not in a coma, is fully conscious, and is aware of exactly what happened. “The patient is fully conscious. He knows exactly what happened,” he says. “All the injured are in shock,” he added.

The doctor mentioned that initially, both the injured and the seven who did not survive were taken to the Lugoj hospital, which is quite close to the accident site and where the doctor himself is located, and then they were transferred to the Timisoara hospital. According to him, the seven bodies were moved from Lugoj to Timisoara, and autopsies have started.

The doctor noted that some parents of the unfortunate fans arrived at the hospital earlier for identification, and in the coming hours, the parents and relatives of the injured will also arrive.

What is lane assist?

Lane Assist, or Lane Keeping Assist (LKA), is an advanced driving assistance system that helps the driver stay within the lane. The system uses cameras and sensors to monitor the lane markings. If the system detects that the vehicle is deviating from the lane, it can intervene by steering the vehicle back into the correct path.

If the driver deliberately wants to change lanes, they can apply extra pressure on the steering wheel to override the system. There are also systems that do not intervene in the driving, but simply warn the driver through audible or visual messages, known as Lane Departure Warnings.