Russia’s emergency minister dies after jumping off cliff in rescue attempt

Yevgeny Zinichev, Russia’s minister of emergencies, on Wednesday, died at the age of 55 after trying to save a filmmaker who had fallen off a cliff, the Guardian reported.

Russia’s ministry of emergency situations confirmed Zinichev’s death through an official statement. 

Margarita Simonyan, the head of Russian media outlet RT, shared in a series of tweets that Zinichev, a former personal aide and bodyguard to Russian President Vladimir Putin, was attempting to save a person who had fallen off a cliff.

The filmmaker also reportedly died.

Zinichev was inspecting the construction of a new fire department in the region of Norilsk, according to the Guardian.  

Про Зиничева.

Они с оператором стояли на краю выступа. Оператор поскользнулся и сорвался в воду. Очевидцев было достаточно – никто не успел даже сообразить, что произошло, как Зиничев рванул в воду за сорвавшимся человеком и разбился о выступавший камень.

— Маргарита Симоньян (@M_Simonyan) September 8, 2021

“About Zinichev. She and the operator stood at the edge of the ledge. The operator slipped and fell into the water,” Simonyan said. 

“There were enough eyewitnesses – no one even had time to figure out what had happened, as Zinichev rushed into the water after the man who had fallen off and crashed against a protruding stone.” 

The ministry’s emergency situations identified the deceased filmmaker as, Alexander Melnik, who gained recognition for filming the 2015 drama “Territory,” the Guardian reported.  

Putin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov shared to a Russian media outlet that the president offered his condolences on Zinichev’s families and friends. 

Zinichev, who was elected by Putin to serve as a regional governor in 2016, held the position as the minister of emergencies since 2018, the Guardian noted.