The man who was seriously injured in a car accident on the provincial road between Eersel and Bergeijk on Tuesday afternoon is the prince of Teutengat (Bergeijk). Carnival association De Teuten confirms this. Prince Ronny d’n Urste (52), or Ronny Schijvens, is in a hospital in Tilburg with several broken bones. “Carnival will certainly be different than we had imagined,” says chairman Eric van Dinter of De Teuten.
The prince crashed into a tree with his van on the N397 between Eersel and Bergeijk on Tuesday afternoon. The bus was full of heavy items, which were pressed against his seat due to the impact. The fire brigade had to get him out of the car.
“He had a total blackout. He remembers nothing about the accident until the moment he hit the tree. Now he steered to the right and hit that tree, but for the same money he steered to the left and he had collided with a truck. It could have been much worse. He had an angel on his shoulder,” says the chairman.
The accident left the prince with ten broken ribs, a broken wrist and a broken index finger. “He is under observation in the hospital in Tilburg. No brain damage or heart problem has been detected so far. He will soon have to undergo surgery on his wrist,” the chairman explains.
“Maybe he will heal miraculously well and quickly.”
According to the chairman, it is certain that carnival will look very different in Teutengat this season. The big party starts in five weeks. “We can’t just say: ‘you know what, we’re looking for someone else’. That’s just not possible. During the carnival there will be quite a few things that we can just do with the prince, such as picking up the prince on carnival Saturday for the official installation. We can come up with something about that.”
“But participating in the polonaise yourself will not be possible. And I think it will also be difficult to participate in the Prince’s car. That will not be possible with the suspension of that car if you have problems with your ribs. We will have to see what is possible in the coming weeks. and cannot. Perhaps he will heal miraculously well and quickly.”
“I assume the worst and anything we can do with the Prince is a bonus.”
The chairman takes it day by day. “I assume the worst and anything we can do with the prince is a bonus. But his health is the most important thing now.”
The first carnival event is on the agenda next Saturday: the first session evening. The chance that he will be there seems small. Who then holds sway? “According to the regulations, the monarch is the one who takes over the tasks. And we hope that the prince’s wife, our princess, can be there.”