7th STATEMENT
by Black Sea Women in Nuclear Network (BSWN) on the recent passing of Natalia Khodemchuk, widow of Valery Khodemchuk.
We express our profound sorrow at the tragic passing of Natalia Khodemchuk, widow of Valery Khodemchuk, the first confirmed victim of the Chernobyl accident.
Photo credits : State Agency of Ukraine on Exclusion Zone Management
Natalia succumbed to her injuries following the missile strike on 14 November in Kyiv, which hit the residential building where former Chernobyl workers and their families lived – a place long known for housing the widows of those who died in the earliest hours of the 1986 disaster.
Valery Khodemchuk was on duty in the Main Circulation Pump room of Unit 4 during the explosion on 26 April 1986. His body was never recovered and is believed to remain beneath the ruins of the reactor, where a memorial now stands in his honor.
The loss of Natalia adds a new and deeply painful chapter to a story marked by sacrifice, resilience, and human cost.
We extend our heartfelt condolences to her family, to the Chernobyl community, and to all those affected by this tragedy.
May her memory be honored and remembered.