Over 500 days without Vitaliy Skakun: story of sapper who slowed down Russia offensive by sacrificing his life

Espreso tells the story of the life and last hours of the soldier in battle.

In a month, Vitaliy Skakun could have celebrated his 27th birthday, but a year has passed since his death.

The soldier was born in the town of Berezhany, Ternopil region, on August 19, 1996. He finished school there, and later entered a higher vocational school in Lviv, where he was trained as an electric and gas welder.

At a young age, Vitaliy loved to read adventure and historical books, never realizing that in just a few years he would become a part of Ukraine's history. His grandmother often scolded him when she found him reading a book in the middle of the night.

"A good student, interested in everything. It's very difficult for me to talk about him in the past tense. He was a child of one of our teachers... He decided that his destiny was the army. And he went to serve," Volodymyr Hrynkevych, the principal of his school, recalled Vitaliy.

He planned to get married after the war

After studying in Lviv, he went to Poland to work, but when he found out that his friend had joined the marines, he joined as well, even though his mother was against it.

He had no intention of getting married during the war, because he believed that he would not be able to deceive his future wife about what was happening in the war, and he could not tell her everything either.

"My wife is the closest person I can't deceive, and I can't and won't tell her about the war. Therefore, while I am serving, while the war is going on, I am not going to get married!" he said and went back to war.

The last battle

Vitaliy Skakun, 25, fought his last battle as a brave warrior, looking death in the face. He volunteered to mine and blow up a strategic object – the Henichesk-Arabat Spit road bridge.

According to the testimony of his comrades-in-arms, Vitaliy got in touch and reported that he was blowing up the bridge.

"An explosion immediately followed, killing the marine. This self-sacrifice was not in vain: Vitaliy's heroic act significantly slowed down the enemy's advance, allowing the unit to redeploy and organize defense," the military said.

On the third day of the full-scale invasion, February 26, 2022, Presidential Decree №2022/74 awarded Vitaliy Skakun the title of Hero of Ukraine and the Order of the Golden Star (posthumously) for outstanding personal courage and heroism in the defense of state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and loyalty to the oath of allegiance.

The heroic deed of Skakun was also reported outside of Ukraine. After his death, Vitaliy became an honorary citizen of Leszno, Poland. In the Czech capital, a bridge was named after the hero. In Ukraine, several cities renamed streets in honor of the fallen soldier, including Skakun Street in the capital. On February 1, 2023, at the Higher Vocational School №20 in Lviv, where Vitaliy studied, a memorial plaque was unveiled.