Ukrainian Marine blows himself up, destroying bridge to slow Russian advance

GEAR CHECK: Our readers don't just follow the news - they stay ready. Featured gear from this story is below.

Jamie Goldstein

Reports claim Ukrainian Combat Engineer, Vitaliy Skakun Volodymyrovych, volunteered for a dangerous mission to rig a bridge with explosives.

Reports claim Ukrainian Combat Engineer, Vitaliy Skakun Volodymyrovych, volunteered for a dangerous mission to rig a bridge with explosives.

The bridge, which connected mainland Ukraine to Russian occupied Crimea, was a key piece of infrastructure that Russian forces planned to use reach the mainland. Volodymyrovych had already emplaced his payload of mines, but did not have time to set a timed fuse, or find cover, by the time Russian troops closed on his position.

<iframe loading="lazy" style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FGeneralStaff.ua%2Fposts%2F258798803099872&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="725" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

Prior to detonation, the Ukrainian Marine, communicated to his unit that he was going to blow the bridge in place. The bridge exploded instantly following his last communication. Volodymyrovych is credited by the General Staff of Ukrainian Armed Forces for ā€œsignificantly slowing the advance of the enemyā€.

Ukrainian military leadership have already began discussing posthumously awarding Volodymyrovych with high honors for his actions. Volodymyrovych’s decision forced Russian troops to take a much longer route through the Kherson province and afforded Ukrainian ground forces the time they needed to re-direct their defenses appropriately.

In response to this act of heroism, one Ukrainian official made a statement to Russian forces: ā€œKnow that the ground will burn under your feet.ā€

Ukraine now claims that since Russian invaded, they have ā€œlost over 2,800 personnel, 17 planes and [helicopters], 80 tanks, and more than 500 vehicles.

Google translation of the statement from the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine:

ā€œOn this difficult day for our country, when the Ukrainian people give away to the Russian occupiers in all directions, one of the hardest places on the map of Ukraine was the Crimean intersection, where one of the first enemies met a separate marine battalion.

In order to stop the promotion of the tank column, a decision was made to overthrow the Geniche Car Bridge.

The engineer of a separate battalion sailor Skakun Vitaliy Volodymyrovich was called to perform this task. The bridge was replaced, but he didn’t have time to get out of there. According to the words of the brothers, Vitaliy came out of contact, and informed about what pĆ­drivĆ¢ the bridge. There was an explosion right away. Our brother was killed. His heroic act significantly slowed down the push of the enemy, allowing the unit to relocate and organize defense.

The Marine Corps Command will be concerned before the higher command about the awarding of the Skakun sailor Vitaliy Volodymyrovich state award.

Russian invaders, know, under your feet the earth will burn! We will fight as long as we live! And as long as we are alive we will fight!ā€

Ā 

You may also like

Blog

A routine campaign stops at an Ohio county fair suddenly turned into a security emergency when an armed man allegedly forced his way through a crowd and charged toward Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton.
The U.S.-Iran war entered a dangerous new phase on September 5 when Iran fired ballistic missiles at two American warships, prompting the United States to strike three Iranian oil tankers in a rapid military and economic retaliation.
A new dark-web marketplace may have exposed the identities of more than 153 million people across the United States and Canada, with hackers reportedly offering digital copies of government-issued IDs for sale.
A wedding celebration in southern Iran turned deadly on September 1 after a U.S. strike reportedly sent missile fragments into a home where dozens of people had gathered, killing at least five people and injuring more than 60.
A 22-year-old college student went to the wrong house in the middle of the night. Minutes later, he was dead after being shot twice by a police officer who had responded to a 911 call about a possible break-in.

Like This Story? Check Out What Our Community Is Buying

Our best sellers are designed for real-world use - not hype.

View Best Sellers