Ukrainian soldier hailed as hero for blowing up bridge to stop Russians

KYIV • A Ukrainian soldier has been hailed as a hero for blowing himself up to destroy a bridge in an effort to stop Russian tanks from invading his country, media reports said.

Marine battalion engineer Vitaly Skakun Volodymyrovych was deployed to the Henichesk bridge in the southern province of Kherson when the Russian tanks advanced, the Ukrainian military said on its Facebook page last Friday.

"He didn't manage to get away from there. According to his brothers in arms, Vitaly got in touch and said he was going to blow up the bridge. Immediately after, an explosion rang out," said the post, according to People.com

"On this difficult day for our country, when the Ukrainian people give way 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," it added.

According to New York Post, when the battalion decided that the only way to block the armoured column was by blowing up the bridge, Volodymyrovych volunteered to place mines on the span, the General Staff of the Armed Forces said.

And when he realised he had no time to get to safety, the soldier made the ultimate sacrifice on the bridge, which connected Russian-occupied Crimea and mainland Ukraine.

"Our brother was killed. His heroic act significantly slowed down the push of the enemy, allowing the unit to relocate and organise defence," the statement continued.

Military commanders said they planned to give Volodymyrovych a posthumous award for his heroic act, New York Post reported.

Separately, footage has emerged of brave Ukrainians from the embattled city of Chernihiv appearing to launch an unarmed defence in front of storming Russian troops over the weekend, British media reported.

In the footage, citizens from the northern Ukraine city can be seen rushing to block the path of a line of Russian tanks. One man appears so determined to stop them that he throws himself onto a moving tank.

The tank then appears to speed off as he struggles to hold on to the tank's main cannon.

Hailing "Ukrainian heroes", Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday said 16 children had died during the first four days of Moscow's assault and another 45 were wounded.

The United Nations' human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said yesterday that at least 102 civilians, including seven children, had been killed, but warned the real numbers were probably far higher.