White death in the frosty woods
During the years 1939-1940, the Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union took place, and it was in this battle that the legend of Sim Häyhä, nicknamed the “White Death”, was born. The 160-centimeter-tall farmer had an unbelievably good eye and used an M28-30 rifle without a scope so that the lens flare would not reveal his position. In extreme cold, he disguised himself with white clothing, built snow piles, and stuffed snow into his mouth so that his breath would not reveal his position. It was thanks to these tricks that he shot over 500 Red Army soldiers in less than 100 days.
Although he made his mark among the soldiers with incredible success, on March 6, 1940, he suffered a severe facial injury from an exploding bullet. For a while he was even thought to be dead, but he woke up from a coma on March 13 – the day peace was declared in Moscow. After recovering, he returned to farming and elk hunting, and lived to be 96 years old. “I did what I was told to the best of my ability,” he summed up modestly. No wonder his story is a symbol of Finnish indomitability and courage.
