The first responders at the site of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant disaster were: Viktor Kibenok, Vladimir Pravik, Nikolai Titenok, Vladimir Tishura, Nikolai Vashchuk, Vasily Ignatenko.
Vasily Ignatenko was born in the village of Sperizhye, Bragin District. By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the USSR of 26 December 1986, he was posthumously awarded the Order of the Red Banner for his courageous and selfless actions to clean up the Chernobyl accident. Streets in Minsk and Bragin have been named after Vasily Ignatenko, a monument to him was erected in Bragin.
Every year clean-up workers, employees of the Emergencies Ministry, and cadets of the University of Civil Protection at the Emergencies Ministry gather in Minsk for a commemorative rally at the Vasily Ignatenko memorial plaque to honor the memory of the heroes with a minute of silence.
Several dozens of Chernobyl clean-up workers still work in the bodies and units of the Emergencies Ministry.
Written by minsk-region.gov.by
