«Fighting for every grain»: A farmer who was demining fields on his own died in Kherson region due to a drone attack

Oleksandr Hordiienko. Photo: Oleksandr Prokudin

A well-known local farmer, Oleksandr Hordiienko, was killed in Kherson region as a result of a Russian drone attack.

This was reported by the head of the Kherson Regional Military Administration, Oleksandr Prokudin.

According to him, in the morning, the drone hit a car in which the man was working in the field.

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Oleksandr Hordiienko had over 30 years of experience in agriculture. He was the owner of the farm «Hordiienko» and headed the regional association of farmers and private landowners.

«He was well known and respected in the Kherson region. No mines, enemy shelling or attacks forced him to give up his life's work. He remained on his native land and worked for the Kherson region to the last,» said Oleksandr Prokudin.

Earlier, «Suspilne» published a story about this farmer. After the de-occupation of the right-bank part of the region, Hordiienko cleared hundreds of hectares of fields of mines on his own, removing several thousand anti-tank mines. He also protected equipment and workers from shelling to keep them working on the land.

Oleksandr Hordiienko with an anti-drone rifle. Photo: Suspilne

This year, the farmer harvested his crops under the cover of electronic warfare equipment and shot down drones with his own rifle. Speaking to journalists, he admitted that he had to «literally fight for every grain». According to him, he managed to neutralise about a hundred drones.

«I decided to fight them... We mostly use REBs, but I've also shot them down with a rifle. It doesn't work the first time, but from the fourth or fifth time, they fall down», said Oleksandr Hordiienko.

As a reminder, according to the Kherson Regional Military Administration, the Russian army shelled 37 settlements in the region over the past 24 hours alone. One person was killed and eight others were injured.