WATCH: Yerevan firefighters pay tribute to retiring colleague with water salute

After 25 years of service, firefighter-rescuer Karen Grigoryan of the Yerevan Fire Department walked out of his fire station for the last time, receiving a heartfelt farewell from his colleagues.

Grigoryan, a warrant officer and team commander with Fire and Rescue Squad No. 9 of the Yerevan Rescue Department, has completed his service with Armenia’s Rescue Service and is retiring.

As he made his final departure, his colleagues saw him off in a touching gesture traditionally associated with firefighters. They sprayed water over him in a water salute, while applauding and cheering him on in tribute to his 25 years of service.

“A firefighter-rescuer may be completing a quarter century of service, but the mark he left through his devoted work will remain in the memories of the people he saved and his colleagues,” the Ministry of Internal Affairs said in a statement, alongside a video of the tribute.