Czech medic wounded in Donbas dies of injuries in Prague hospital

A Czech medic volunteering in Ukraine and founder of the Phoenix combat project, who was seriously injured by a shrapnel in Ukraine in March, has died.

Representatives of the Phoenix project announced that the man, known as Taylor, had succumbed to his injuries Monday after spending weeks at the Central Military Hospital in Prague.

He "personally saved many wounded fighters on the eastern front and trained thousands of soldiers and civilians in combat medicine," said representatives of the combat-volunteer organization that helps Ukraine's war efforts.

The volunteer was hit by a shrapnel in March, and his injuries initially prevented his transfer to the Czech Republic, which was not possible until early April. According to the Phoenix project, doctors and medical staff in Kyiv and then in Lviv were able to provide the best possible care to the injured man, which made him fit for the transport despite his serious condition.

A project spokesperson said that Phoenix was created spontaneously as a one-man initiative in response to the Russian aggression against Ukraine. Volunteers have trained some 5,000 soldiers in combat medicine all over Ukraine within the project, he added.

The team members are former professional soldiers, paramedics as well as people from other professions, such as geophysicists, technologists, professional drivers, and businessmen.

According to earlier information from the Foreign Ministry, two Czech volunteers died in the war in Ukraine while fighting against the Russian troops – one in March this year and the other last June.