Kyiv says goodbye to rescuer Ruslan Koshov, who was killed by Russians on February 24, 2022 in Gostomel
Ruslan Koshovyi is the head of fire and rescue unit 30, which was located on the territory of SE “Antonov” in Gostomel. Ruslan arrived in part to his colleagues around 7 am on the day of the full-scale invasion, but already at lunchtime he stopped answering calls and SMS to his relatives. At the same time, news began to spread about the seizure of the airfield in Gostomel by the Russians. By the end of the day, the rescuer never got in touch, and later it became known that the racists shot the fire truck driven by Ruslan Koshovoy. Then the man tried to save his colleagues and take them out of the airfield.
The occupiers then refused to give the body of Ruslan Koshov, but after the de-occupation of Kyiv region it was not found either on the territory of the State Enterprise “Antonov” or within Ukraine. For a year and a half, the family sought, turned to various services, volunteers and public organizations, in order to be able to say goodbye to Ruslan and to bury the hero in his homeland with dignity. However, there were no results.
During the last exchange of the dead in August 2023, it became known that the head of PRP-30 Ruslan Koshovy was among them. On September 8, relatives, emergency colleagues and everyone who knew the brave and brave rescuer took him on the last journey.
“The entire family of several thousand rescuers of the State Emergency Service bow their heads before Ruslan and his act. He tried to save people by dying himself. Everyone knew him as a highly skilled leader and a good-natured man. It is our sacred duty to remember Ruslan and help his family,” Volodymyr Demchuk, acting head of the State Emergency Service, stressed temporarily.
Also, Vladimir Demchuk noted that the motor boat of the State Emergency Service was named after Ruslan Koshovoy, which continues the work of the man - helping to save people's lives.
Ruslan Koshov was posthumously awarded the title of Colonel of the Civil Protection Service and awarded the Order “For Courage” III degree. He has a daughter, wife, parents and brother, who currently also serves in the ranks of emergency services of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.
Department of Communications of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine
