YEREVAN. - The injured in the May 17 major car accident in Armenia’s capital do not remember clearly what had happened, deputy director of surgical unit of “Erebuni” medical center Mikael Mikaelyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am.

A 54-year-old Valer Petrosyan got on passenger minibus № 76 in the evening. He received injuries of upper and lower limbs. “We heard a noise and saw flames. There was a child sitting before me. I broke the window, throw him out and then I got out or was pulled out, I do not remember exactly. We were lying under the wall, waiting for ambulance. Firefighters and police arrived, but ambulance was late, whereas it should have arrived the first,” Petrosyan said.

According to Mikaelyan, one of the 9 patients was discharged from hospital in the morning, two others were sent to the Center of Burns. Two of the nine injured are in intensive care unit and three others in the surgery department. Mikaelyan stressed that health state of all patients is stable, they have no life-threatening injuries.

There are two women in the intense care department. One of them is 5-months pregnant, she has a closed craniocerebral injury, broken facial bones and a severe leg injury. Two patients-a young woman with multiple injuries and a doctor of Erebuni medical centre underwent surgery at night.

“Many could not remember what happened to them. All of them were to some extent shocked and could hardly answer our questions. Those sitting behind received minor injuries unlike those close to the driver,” he said.

Postgraduate student, trauma surgeon Mushegh Gevorgyan, who is a doctor at Erebuni medical centre, was returning home after night duty on this day. He said that the minibus was moving at normal speed, but suddenly put on the brake. “I felt a collision and saw flames, I did not understand as everything happened instantaneously.  We did not even have time to think how to go out, to break the door, window or ... It all happened very quickly,” said the young doctor, who suffered a thigh fracture.

As Armenian News-NEWS.am reported earlier, four people burned alive in their vehicles, nine injured including a 7-year-old child following a serious car accident  (photo session) in Yerevan on Tuesday.

Photojournalist Gagik Shamshyan informed Armenian News-NEWS.am that Mercedes-Benz collided with GAZelle van on Artsakh street. Both vehicles burned instantly after the crash and, according to the witnesses, soon “turned to ashes.”