Vladimir Likhonos was working with explosive chemicals at the time of his death.
A Ukrainian student tragically lost his life after his chewing gum unexpectedly exploded while in his mouth.
Vladimir Likhonos, who was only 25 at the time, had been studying at a branch of the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute in 2009 when this gruesome accident occurred.
According to a report by The Associated Press, police spokeswoman Elvira Biganova described the incident as an unfortunate mistake, something that "anybody could have mixed up."
Likhonos had been working with explosive chemicals for his studies at the time and is believed to have confused a highly volatile substance with citric acid. He regularly used citric acid to keep his gum flavorful while working.
The explosive powder had been sitting on his workstation and looked nearly identical to the sour powder commonly used in foods and beverages for its tangy taste.
Elvira Biganova explained that the explosive went off in Likhonos' mouth, severely injuring him by ripping off a large portion of his face.
As reported by The Independent, the explosion blew off his jaw and most of the lower half of his face, leaving him critically wounded.
However, when the emergency medical team arrived to assess his condition, it quickly became clear that his injuries were too severe for him to survive.
Bigonova added: "Even some of our seasoned officers, who have seen a thing or two, even they were pretty badly shaken up by what they found."
During the early stages of their investigation, police examined Likhonos' workspace and found approximately 3.5 ounces (around 100 grams) of the explosive substance.
She pointed out that the powder resembled citric acid but had not yet been fully identified.
Bigonova sympathized with the student, explaining: "Anybody could have mixed them up."
A bomb squad was later called to the scene to properly assess the substance, and it was determined to be far too unstable to be safely transported.
According to a local news report, experts revealed that the explosive powder Likhonos accidentally used was estimated to be four times stronger than TNT.
There are conflicting accounts of where the accident took place—some reports claim he was in the university, while others suggest he was at home, where his brother reportedly found him after hearing a loud explosion.
Tatyana Kushnerova, an assistant to the head of the Konotop city police, explained that Likhonos' severe injuries occurred the moment the "chewing bomb" detonated in his mouth.
Responding to the news of his tragic death, Irina Lisovskaya, the deputy dean of the chemical engineering faculty, said in an interview with Zhitomir: "He got an A in chemistry, but his grades in other subjects were average."
She added: "Yes, Vladimir was not a poor student, but he never graduated from KPI - he could not defend his diploma thesis and was expelled last year. It's a shame he died. But they don't teach how to make bombs at KPI!"