EXCLUSIVE British bomb disposal expert killed dismantling Russian mines in Ukraine 'saved thousands of lives'

Daily Mail​

16-05-2025

The heartbroken mother of a British hero who was killed dismantling Russian mines in Ukraine has paid tribute to her 'modest' son who saved thousands of lives.
Brave Christopher Garrett - known to friends as Chris or 'Swampy - died in an explosion on Tuesday while working on the frontline Izyum, near Kharkiv.
The father-of-one, 40, had worked tirelessly in the region since war broke out in Crimea in 2014, before returning to the frontline once again when Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in 2022.
Speaking from her home in Peel on the Isle of Man, his mother Hazel, 70, told MailOnline she would be 'forever proud' of the work her former tree-surgeon son carried out across the war-torn nation.
She said: 'I feel so proud of him. He was always very loving and always an adventurer.
'He studied everything about mines and worked so hard to pass on the information on to so many people that he will have saved hundreds, if not thousands, of lives.
'Thousands of people in Ukraine are now living because of him and that is what he will be remembered for.'
As well as his mother and her partner Dave, Mr Garrett leaves behind his partner Courtney Pollock and their daughter Reed, who is just 18-months-old.
Mr Garrett and Miss Pollock founded the charity Prevail Together, alongside a group of military and humanitarian experts from across the world.
The group works relentlessly in a bid to dispose of explosives in Ukraine, which is now thought to be the most heavily mined region in the world, with potentially 23 per cent of the land contaminated.
For many, simply entering the frontline would be a daunting experience - let alone disposing of explosives.
But Mr Garrett, who risked his life every day volunteering, tried not to worry about the dangers surrounding him and simply referred to himself as an 'explosive bin man'.
'To be honest I don't really think about it. I wake up in the morning, have my cigarette and coffee and just get on with it,' he told iNews after the war broke out.
In fact, Mr Garrett never thought of himself as a hero, according to his close friend Karolina Davison told MailOnline.
Mrs Davison, who grew up in Ukraine before moving to the Isle of Man where Mr Garrett lived, said: 'He is such an honourable and humble person. He never admitted that he was a hero and he never thought of himself as one.
'The world has lost a person who has sacrificed his life for the thousands of lives he has saved by training people in Ukraine to dispose of explosives.
'They were risking their lives every day and every day he knew it could be his last one but he persevered and did what he loved to make a difference every day of his life. He has left such a void that cannot be filled for the many people who got to know him.'
Mr Garrett, who was taught how to clear mines in south-east Asia, was one of the first into the massacred towns of Bucha and Irpin at the start of the war as well as working tirelessly in the Hostomel Airport battle.
His mother, however, initially did not know her 'fabulous and loveable' son, was amongst those on the frontline.
Mrs Garrett added: 'Initially, I did not know he was planning to go there, and I thought he was travelling elsewhere - then I got a phone call saying 'mum, I am not where you think I am'.
'I was nervous when he went and I initially did not understand it. I didn't really understand what he was doing or where it had all started.
'But helping others has always been a part of him and what he wanted to do. There was always this side to him, which is why he ended up doing what he was doing.'
As a young boy, who was adopted by Mrs Garrett and her husband when he was two-years-old, he spent most of his childhood days outdoors, playing cricket or enjoying his favourite pastime, fishing. A 'loveable' child, his teachers were often in 'awe of him', his mother explained.
His love of travel, music and adventure kicked in during his teenage years. By chance on his way to join a badminton club, he stumbled across the Army Cadets where he started to learn the basics of his trade.
Mr Garrett, his mother said, was always a NOMAD and enjoyed living 'rustic' living in the back of a van or camping with friends.
After a brief stint in the army, he went on to work on fishing boats, before becoming a tree surgeon and later - as he will be remembered - as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technician.
It was during the Ukraine war that he met his partner and mother of his child, Miss Pollock, an American paramedic, firefighter and pilot.
In November 2023, their daughter Reed was born in Utah and while most new parents spend the first few months of their child's life sleep deprived, the pair continued their hard work establishing Prevail Together.
The charity, whose board members include former British soldier and Ukraine war prisoner Shaun Pinner, officially launched in July 2023.
'It was their dream to set up this charity because Christopher knew this would be a job for life and they would have been able to continue their work helping others,' Mrs Garrett added.
'They probably would have lived in Ukraine, I think they would have eventually moved there permanently.'
The group has several functions including land mine clearances, offering medical support and EOD training.
Mr Garrett, who was sentenced to 14 and a half years in jail by a Russian proxy court in Donets earlier this year, said his role in the charity was 'preserving life, not taking it'.
The tragic news of Mr Garrett's death was announced by his friend and colleague Mr Pinner earlier this week.
Paying tribute to Mr Garrett he told Manx Radio Station: 'He dedicated so much of his life to clearing mines, and mine awareness. It really is what he was all about.
'Chris loved the people, the country, the culture, and really was against the injustices that Russia is committing here.
'That old saying; 'you fight not for the enemy in front but for the love behind' - that was endemic of his spirit, really.'
The British and Ukranian military are currently working to help bring Mr Garrett back to his home on the Isle of Man so his family can arrange his funeral.
More than £16,000 has already been raised in a fundraiser to help bring Mr Garrett, who served in the British army briefly as a teenager, back.
Any additional funds raised from the GoFundMe will be given to help support his partner and their child.