He is always smiling and joking. Wearing a T-shirt with a sticker of his favorite rock band, Linkin Park, and tattoos of their logo on his arms.
Junior Sergeant Tymur Kovalenko is 27 years old. He is a sapper. At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Tymur went straight to the front, literally from his workplace: he was working at one of the Nova Poshta (Ukraines Post Office) branches in the capital at the time. Due to his age, the military recruitment office had previously rejected him, but Tymur convinced the soldiers who came to the post office to take him with them.
He joined the “Troieshchyna” Territorial Defense Forces (TDF). He mastered the sapper specialty. From that point on, he fought in the infantry on the Donetsk and Luhansk fronts.
On September 20, 2023, during a combat mission, Tymur suffered a mine-explosive injury to both of his legs. He applied the tourniquet himself. First aid was provided on-site — in the forest plantation. With his characteristic humor, Tymur recounts this horrific situation.
And then began a very long road to stabilization: Lyman, Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, Dobropillia, Kremenchuk. Numerous surgeries followed, from September 20, 2023, to December 2, 2023. His diagnosis: impaired mobility, inability to take care of himself, inability to stand or move with crutches more than 20 meters, and a high risk of losing his left foot. On February 7, 2024, Kovalenko arrived at Nodus in a wheelchair, with severe infections in his legs. There was no talk of walking independently. Donors save lives with their contributions, and thanks to these generous people, Tymur got the opportunity to undergo rehabilitation and return to a full life.
Six months have passed. Several surgeries and long hours of training on advanced medical equipment at the Nodus center—and now Tymur can already walk a few meters on his own, without crutches.
This is a significant achievement and the first steps towards being able to walk independently once again.
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