Pala accident
Encyclopedia
The Pala accident was a fatal traffic incident involving a school bus
on 11 October 1996 in Jõgeva County
, Estonia
. The bus was carrying 35 students of the Pala comprehensive school and 2 adults; 8 people died.
The PAZ school bus met a Scania
wood lorry at the 3rd kilometre of Sõõru
–Nõva road, a narrow unpaved road. Having noticed each other, the drivers chose different strategies: the school bus driver, driving at a low speed, kept to the right side of the road in order to give the lorry more space to pass; the lorry, driving at about 70–80 km/h, began the manœuvre by braking heavily. On the unpaved road, braking led to cross-road oscillation of the lorry, leading the lorry driver to worry about a risk of falling off the road. The lorry driver compensated by temporarily unbraking and turning sharply left—towards the axis of the road—at an unfortunate time, leading the lorry to drive into the school bus at an angle of about 30 degrees. In the collision, the lorry "skinned" off the school bus' left side, killing 8 students born in 1982–1986.
Emergency response was delayed due to the accident site not being covered by GSM towers at that time as well as the lower-frequency emergency response dispatch radio transmitter being relatively far from the site, leading to several ambulances passing the accident site before finding it. However, considering the nature of the deaths and injuries, medical experts believe the delays did not increase their number.
declared the day a national day of mourning.
Numerous logistical mistakes were uncovered in the handling of this accident. While experts agree that it did not increase the death toll, the cabinet of ministers convened a crisis commission on 28 October 1996 to hear evidence on incident handling.
Several survivors, including the lorry driver, suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder
. In the following five years, the lorry driver was repeatedly hospitalised in Tartu psychiatric hospital; in the following ten years, his psychological state deteriorated, leading to experts repeatedly finding he was not competent to stand trial and prompting the supervising prosecutor to apply for a court order to force treatment on him shortly before the statute of limitations
ran out.
Jallo Freiethal, a surviving student in the bus and 12 years old at the time of the accident, was awarded an Order of Red Cross of the second class by president Lennart Meri
on 19 February 1997 for disconnecting the school bus' batteries, thus reducing the risk of a gasoline fire.
School bus
A school bus is a type of bus designed and manufactured for student transport: carrying children and teenagers to and from school and school events...
on 11 October 1996 in Jõgeva County
Jõgeva County
Jõgeva County , or Jõgevamaa, is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is situated in eastern part of the country and borders Ida-Viru County to the north-east, Lake Peipus to the east, Tartu County to the south, Viljandi County to the south-west, Järva County to the north-west and Lääne-Viru County to...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
. The bus was carrying 35 students of the Pala comprehensive school and 2 adults; 8 people died.
The PAZ school bus met a Scania
Scania
Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
wood lorry at the 3rd kilometre of Sõõru
Sooru
Sooru is a village in Tõlliste Parish, Valga County in southern Estonia. It's located about 10 km northeast of the town of Valga. Sooru has a population of 295 and an area of 14.62 km². Sooru borders the Väike Emajõgi River on its northeastern side.Sooru Manor was first mentioned in 1388 as Sore...
–Nõva road, a narrow unpaved road. Having noticed each other, the drivers chose different strategies: the school bus driver, driving at a low speed, kept to the right side of the road in order to give the lorry more space to pass; the lorry, driving at about 70–80 km/h, began the manœuvre by braking heavily. On the unpaved road, braking led to cross-road oscillation of the lorry, leading the lorry driver to worry about a risk of falling off the road. The lorry driver compensated by temporarily unbraking and turning sharply left—towards the axis of the road—at an unfortunate time, leading the lorry to drive into the school bus at an angle of about 30 degrees. In the collision, the lorry "skinned" off the school bus' left side, killing 8 students born in 1982–1986.
Emergency response was delayed due to the accident site not being covered by GSM towers at that time as well as the lower-frequency emergency response dispatch radio transmitter being relatively far from the site, leading to several ambulances passing the accident site before finding it. However, considering the nature of the deaths and injuries, medical experts believe the delays did not increase their number.
Aftermath
The children who died in the accident were buried on 16 October 1996. By a special decree, the prime minister Tiit VähiTiit Vähi
Tiit Vähi is an Estonian politician, Prime Minister of Estonia from 1995 to 1997, and acting Prime Minister for several months during 1992 under the transitional government....
declared the day a national day of mourning.
Numerous logistical mistakes were uncovered in the handling of this accident. While experts agree that it did not increase the death toll, the cabinet of ministers convened a crisis commission on 28 October 1996 to hear evidence on incident handling.
Several survivors, including the lorry driver, suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Posttraumaticstress disorder is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event that results in psychological trauma. This event may involve the threat of death to oneself or to someone else, or to one's own or someone else's physical, sexual, or psychological integrity,...
. In the following five years, the lorry driver was repeatedly hospitalised in Tartu psychiatric hospital; in the following ten years, his psychological state deteriorated, leading to experts repeatedly finding he was not competent to stand trial and prompting the supervising prosecutor to apply for a court order to force treatment on him shortly before the statute of limitations
Statute of limitations
A statute of limitations is an enactment in a common law legal system that sets the maximum time after an event that legal proceedings based on that event may be initiated...
ran out.
Jallo Freiethal, a surviving student in the bus and 12 years old at the time of the accident, was awarded an Order of Red Cross of the second class by president Lennart Meri
Lennart Meri
Lennart Georg Meri was a writer, film director and statesman who served as the second President of Estonia from 1992 to 2001. Meri was a leader of the Estonian independence movement.-Early life:...
on 19 February 1997 for disconnecting the school bus' batteries, thus reducing the risk of a gasoline fire.
Sources
- PostimeesPostimeesPostimees is an Estonian daily newspaper. It was established in 1 January 1857 by Johann Voldemar Jannsen and became Estonia's first daily newspaper in 1891....
17 October 1996: Eile oli Eestis leinapäev by Urmas Klaas - LuupLUUPLuup is an m-commerce payment solution that allows users to pay, send and receive money via their mobile phone. Luup is building an international mobile transaction network by partnering with banks and financial institutions around the world...
28 October 1996: Surmasõit by Mai Vöörmann, Maarja-Liis Arujärv and Toomas Sildam - LuupLUUPLuup is an m-commerce payment solution that allows users to pay, send and receive money via their mobile phone. Luup is building an international mobile transaction network by partnering with banks and financial institutions around the world...
14 April 1997: Pärast Pala katastroofi by Mai Vöörmann - SL ÕhtulehtSL ÕhtulehtÕhtuleht is the second largest daily newspaper in Estonia, with approximately 242,000 readers. Õhtuleht is a tabloid newspaper. The newspaper is published in the Estonian language...
11 October 2001: Meie elamata elu on kusagil olemas by Tarmo Michelson - PostimeesPostimeesPostimees is an Estonian daily newspaper. It was established in 1 January 1857 by Johann Voldemar Jannsen and became Estonia's first daily newspaper in 1891....
24 November 2004: Arstid ei luba Pala avarii põhjustajat kohtu ette - Puutepunkt March 2006: Pala bussiõnnetus – kümme aastat hiljem by Tiina Kangro
- PostimeesPostimeesPostimees is an Estonian daily newspaper. It was established in 1 January 1857 by Johann Voldemar Jannsen and became Estonia's first daily newspaper in 1891....
30 May 2009: Eesti raskeimad liiklusõnnetused jäävad ajalukku