Tetiana Lavrina, a resident of Horenka in the Hostomel community, has proposed a memorial sign by the Hostomel bridge in honour of sappers Zakhar Kvasnyi and Roman Shymanskyi. Both have been posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine.

This was reported by Censor.NET.

On 25 February 2022 the sappers blew up the Hostomel bridge to stop Russian armour advancing on Kyiv. Both soldiers were later killed. The rebuilt bridge on the M-07 highway fully reopened to traffic in February 2024.

What is proposed

The sign is proposed for an accessible and safe spot right by the rebuilt bridge. According to the initiator, it should carry the defenders’ full names, the date and circumstances of their feat, their Hero of Ukraine titles and a QR code linking to a verified historical note.

I am convinced that rebuilding the bridge must not mean losing the memory of the price paid to defend our capital. The bridge is not just a piece of transport infrastructure: it is the site of a real historical event that matters to the Hostomel community, the Kyiv region and all of Ukraine.

Tetiana Lavrinaresident of Horenka

Lavrina proposes involving the fallen soldiers’ families, representatives of their unit and local residents in drawing up the concept. She wants the sign unveiled by 25 February 2027, the fifth anniversary of the bridge being blown up.

Who Zakhar Kvasnyi and Roman Shymanskyi were

The President awarded both the title of Hero of Ukraine with the Golden Star order on 6 November 2026: Lieutenant Zakhar Kvasnyi and Junior Sergeant Roman Shymanskyi.

Zakhar Kvasnyi was born in 1999 in the Khmelnytskyi region, graduated from the Hetman Petro Sahaidachnyi National Army Academy and from 2021 commanded an engineer sapper platoon. He was 22.

Roman Shymanskyi came from the Vinnytsia region, served as a sapper from 2006 and from 2014 was constantly deployed on demining missions. He commanded a sapper section and is survived by his wife and two sons.

As a reminder, land in the Hostomel community where fighting took place is being prepared for return to use.

Nota bene

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