Russian Airborne Troops Commander Lt. Gen. Vladimir Shamanov recently survived a terrible car accident. Shamanov's BMW crashed into a MAZ truck that veered into the oncoming lane. The general's driver was killed, and the commander himself was badly injured and taken to hospital. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited Shamanov at the hospital and urged him to keep positive in spite of everything.
The accident happened last Saturday, at about 9:45, less than a kilometre away from Tula. Vladimir Shamanov was riding in his staff BMW with his aide Oleg Chernous and Alexei Naumets, the acting commander of the Tula paratroopers division. Driver Oleg Zineyev was at the wheel. It was the driver who took the hardest hit when the MAZ truck unexpectedly veered into them from the oncoming lane.
Everything happened so fast that there was no chance of avoiding the accident. The BMW's hood was badly crumpled. The driver was killed on the spot, Shamanov got a concussion and fractures in his arm and leg. Oleg Chernous and Alexei Naumets were also taken to hospital and the latter is being treated in an intensive care unit.
The two Tajik nationals who were riding in the MAZ truck were not injured. Dovlatsho Elbigiyev, 38 years old, was at the wheel. He was charged with manslaughter. According to the deputy head of the Federal Migration Service, Dovlatsho Elbigiyev entered Russia legally on May 20 and was working as a driver in Tula. At the wheel he was sober and veered into the oncoming lane to avoid a collision with a car in his lane that allegedly cut in on him. Nevertheless, Elbigiyev will be found guilty of the accident and may face up to five years in prison.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited Vladimir Shamanov at the Burdenko hospital, where the general and Alexei Naumets had been taken.
"Well, at least you're smiling," the prime minister said. "The specialists here are great, so everything will be fine. Keep positive – that's the main thing. I am not going to talk about what happened. Your well-being is now paramount."
"Shamanov is a strong man," Defence Minister Anatoly Serdykov added. "He will recover and continue commanding the Airborne Troops."
Dmitry Yevstifeyev