If the MIR complex still would have been alive a number of orbits later, monitoring telemetry channels might have been be possible. From 0638UTC on that Friday the 23rd the orbits would have come in range of the Netherlands. Especially between 0940 and 0947UTC MIR would pass over a part of our territory and for 1 or 2 minutes, due to the elevation of 76 degrees, a once in a lifetime event might have been possible. But always the same news people did not refer to the fact that always with a lot of skill and improvisation, the Russians succeeded in surviving and restoring the situation. If the return operation had been a catastrophe or the cause of victims or damage, all the good and positive effects of those 15 years exploitation would have been lost.
Sharks are inclined to bite when they smell blood.
Don't forget that there was no crew on board as of June 2000 and that means that for me there did not change that much. From now on there is only no longer the need to monitor those telemetry channels. But nevertheless I experienced a strong feeling of sadness. I thought about the hundreds of space flight experts in Russia, who had been involved in the MIR exploitation. For instance TsUP, the flight control near Moscow.