Deputy Chief of the Engineering Troops - Colonel
Unit: Western Military District
Cargo ID: #78
Full Name: Nikolai Nikolaevich Ovcharenko
Russian Name: Овчаренко Николаю Николаевичу
Date of Birth: June 15, 1982 (age: 39 years)
Place of Birth: Leningrad, Leningrad Oblast, Russia (now St.Petersburg)
Awards: Order of Courage (ph.), Medal "Defender of the Fatherland", Medal "For Military Valor" 1st Class, Medal "Participant of the Military Operation in Syria", Medal "For Courage", Other Medals Under Investigation, Badge "Officer Master Class", Badge "Graduation from a Higher Education Institution"
It was during the construction of a crossing point over the Seversky Donets River south of Izyum. The Ukrainian Armed Forces had a very good aiming position, with their UAV hovering overhead all the time.
It was necessary to install a crossing with a length of 90 meters and a width of 6.5 meters. Such a crossing allows cars to go quickly and tanks go up to 30 kilometers per hour. A set of parts for the pontoon is transported by five dozen Ural trucks. You can assemble the bridge in less than an hour. But, when bombs fly on your head, this time stretches for a long time.
The pontoons were unfolding the bridge under fire and Ovcharenko was personally directing their actions. Not from his command post or armored vehicle, but with his soldiers.
Many would say that a commander at this level should not expose himself to risk, but in this case there was no other option, and Ovcharenko proved to the full extent that there is no greater love than laying down one's life for one's country.
"The name of the deceased colonel will now be borne by a pontoon crossing over the Seversky Donets River. It was so called by the Russian soldiers themselves in memory of the commander who gave his life for a just cause. Now military engineers continue to support the pontoon crossing. Our troops and cargo are moving along it in the direction of Slavyansk."
