Russian Women and Men Mourn the Loss of Boris Yeltsin
Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin passed away in a Kremlin hospital from heart failure on Monday at the age of 76. He died at 3:45 p.m. according to the Kremlin’s top doctor, Sergei Mironov, as a result of progressive cardiovascular and multiple organ failure.
There where concerns about his health when he did not attend the Russia/Spain Federation Cup match last weekend. It was reported that he had a cold, but acquaintances say that he was more ill than just a cold. He had been in the hospital for a week and couldn’t walk.
Yeltsin took over as Russia’s president after Mikhail Gorbachev lost control of the country in 1991. He served as president until late 1999 when he was succeeded by Putin. In 1996 Yeltsin had quintuple bypass surgery and multiple illnesses after that before he resigned on December 31, 1999. He had most recently broken a hip in Italy in September of 2005 while vacationing.
President Vladimir Putin has expressed his condolences to Naina, Yeltsin’s widow and a number of current and former Russian politicians have expressed their sadness at his passing.
His survivors include has wife, Naina, and two daughters, five grandchildren and three great grandchildren. The family has not yet made funeral arrangements.
