Address by Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman on the occasion of the Day of Honoring the Participants of Elimination of the Chernobyl Accident Consequences

Fellow citizens!

The explosion at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in April of 1986 has become a disaster having global impact, that had fell on the Ukrainian nation then, and the repercussions of which are still keenly felt. The aftermath of the accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant would have been even greater if not a heroic and selfless feat of liquidators who were fighting to mitigate the consequences of the explosion from its first hours.

At that time, when nobody could have imagined all the risks and scales of the disaster, and the communist regime was trying to conceal that from the public, it were them who were the first to start fighting the evil at the expense of their lives and health. This was a momentous feat of people who came face-to-face with the technogenic catastrophe, and who courageously withstood and localized the spread of this calamity.

The extent of gratitude to the liquidators cannot be measured, as through their efforts, their health, their lives they brought salvation to the Ukrainian citizens and all of the mankind. Their heroic deed will remain embedded in Ukrainian people’s memories forever.

I wish the liquidators of the aftereffects of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant disaster sound health and longevity, peaceful skies, well-being and heartfelt gratitude for the risk taking!