their schoolteachers were evacuated to the resorts and hotels in the warmer regions of Ukraine. According to the governor of Luhansk Oblast G. Moskal, it has been the worst human-made disaster in the history of independent Ukraine. War in Donbas (2014–present) Starting mid-April 2014, pro-Russian separatists captured and occupied several towns in the Luhansk Oblast, including Alchevsk. In the following war in Donbas, the city became a part of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic. Economy The main branches of Alchevsk industry – metallurgical and chemical. Electromechanical, light and food industry is also developed. Currently the city has 17 industrial enterprises. Demographics As of the Ukrainian Census of 2001: Ethnicity Russians: 51.6% Ukrainians: 44.7% Belarusians: 1.1% Language Russian: 83.6% Ukrainian: 15.3% Belarusian: 0.1% Armenian: 0.1% Romani: 0.1% Education The Donbas State Technical University, founded in 1957, is located in Alchevsk. Sports Alchevsk is home to the football team FC Stal Alchevsk which currently participates in the Ukrainian First League, the second tier of national football competitions. Twin towns and sister cities Alchevsk is twinned with: Dąbrowa Górnicza, Poland Dunaújváros, Hungary References Sources Ye. M. Pospelov. "Имена городов: вчера и сегодня (1917–1992). Топонимический словарь." (City Names: Yesterday and Today (1917–1992). Toponymic Dictionary.) Москва, "Русские словари", 1993. External links Official site of town authorities Unofficial town page Another unofficial town page Alchevsk winter disaster page Map of Alchevsk Cities in Luhansk Oblast Populated places established in 1895 Yekaterinoslav Governorate Cities of regional significance in Ukraine 1895 establishments in the Russian Empire Populated places established in the Russian Empire City name changes in Ukraine Former Soviet toponymy in Ukraine