It was 10 minutes before the clock showed 11 on the morning of November 5, 2009.
Charalambos was sacrificed on the morning of November 5, 2009 at a first line outpost, in the center of Nicosia in the Rokas bastion, near the Paphos gate. It was 10.50 am when a deafening explosion was heard in the ammunition area of the outpost.
The moment when the then 29-year-old Charalambos Charalambous hugged the grenade which by itself had armed. Specifically had broken plastic housing which held the trigger mechanism.
He held her in his arms giving 3 of his soldiers the opportunity to run to be saved.
An investigation carried out after his death found that the then 29-year-old Lieutenant was killed by a faulty grenade and not by human error.
At that time, the Minister of Defense, Costas Papakostas, in his statements attributed the causes of the tragic accident to "human error".
The investigation, therefore, showed that not only the specific deadly grenade but also thousands of others of the same type, were damaged in the warehouses of the National Guard.
12 years after his heroic sacrifice, Captain Charalambos Charalambous received the expected honor from the State, with the Medal of "Altruism and Self-Sacrifice". This Medal is awarded to those people who risk their lives to save their fellow human beings in danger.
YPAM: Today we honor the memory of Captain Charalambos Charalambous
"Today we honor the memory of Captain Charalambos Charalambous. "He sacrificed himself with self-denial and a high sense of duty to save the lives of his colleagues from a grenade blast in November 2009 at a National Guard outpost," the defense minister said in a tweet. Charalambos Petridis quotes photos from a modest ceremony that took place this morning at the outpost where Charalambos was sacrificed.
Today we honor the memory of Captain Charalambos Charalambous. With self-denial and a high sense of duty, he sacrificed himself to save the lives of his colleagues from a grenade blast in November 2009 at an outpost. @NationalGuardCY @DefenceCyprus pic.twitter.com/lfMl8D6aMU
- Charalambos Petrides (@PetridesCh) November 5, 2021
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