Silent Hero of Chernobyl

Vladimir Pravik was one of the first firefighters to arrive at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant

on April 26th, 1986. Only 23 years old, he led his team to fight the flames

on the reactor roof - without knowing the air around him was filled with deadly

radiation. Within minutes, he began to feel sick - his face burned,

his eyes turned red, and his skin started blistering. He was rushed to

Hospital No. 6 in Moscow, suffering from acute radiation syndrome. Despite every effort,

his organs failed. Vladimir Pravik died two weeks later, on May 9th, 1986.

He was buried in Moscow, sealed in a zinc-lined coffin, a silent hero of