If the partition task crashes, it cannot validate. However, if the HDD LED signals activity, you should indeed wait for it to end.
If there is no activity but the error still persists, get this program:
http://home.t-online.de/home/thomas-rapp/validate.lhaOpen a Shell window and enter Validate DH1: off
This will mark the partition's bitmap valid and the disk validator will not start on the next reboot.
However, the file system is still damaged and using it might cause more damage. So the first thing you should do is to backup all files, format the partition and copy all files back.
If during the backup you encounter the crash again, remember the damaged file and don't attempt to copy it again.
Bye,
Thomas
