A military doctor and polar explorer who had been to Antarctica three times has died
Valery Semenyuk, a military doctor and polar explorer who took part in three Antarctic expeditions during his career, has died at the age of 59. Colleagues remember him as a man with a big heart, high professionalism, and exceptional integrity.
Since 2022, he had served in the Armed Forces of Ukraine as a resident in the medical rehabilitation and recovery department of military unit A7010.
His heart stopped beating on June 7. “It is with deep sorrow that we learned of the loss in the family of the ‘combat penguins’—the polar explorers who stood up to defend Ukraine. Until his very last moment, he remained on duty as the doctor on call," the NASC team wrote on Facebook.
Valerii Semenyuk – what is known about him
He was born on May 13, 1967. From 1994 to 2022, he worked at the Khmelnytskyi Central Hospital and participated in Ukrainian Arctic expeditions in 2006–2007, 2009–2010, and 2013–2014. In May 2022, he was mobilized into the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
"Polar explorers who worked with Valerii Pavlovych on expeditions remember him fondly. He was honest, straightforward, and principled. He always told the truth as it was," the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU) stated. They emphasize that Valery was a man with a big heart, someone you could always turn to for help. For example, he helped young polar explorers adapt to life in Antarctica, even though he worked as a doctor.
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