US armored vehicle missing in Lithuania pulled from swamp but fate of 4
soldiers is still unknown
[March 31, 2025]
By LIUDAS DAPKUS
VILNIUS,
Lithuania (AP) — A U.S. armored vehicle that went missing in Lithuania
has been retrieved from a swamp after a six-day search but there is
still no information about the fate of the four American soldiers who
were on board, Lithuanian officials said Monday.
"The
armored vehicle was pulled ashore at 4:40 a.m., the towing operation is
complete, Lithuanian Military Police and US investigators continue their
work,” Defense Minister Dovilė Šakalienė said Monday morning in a post
on Facebook. |
In this image provided by the U.S. Army, U.S. Army soldiers from the 1st
Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, along with
Lithuanian Army and emergency services personnel, discuss their plan to
recover four U.S. soldiers in a U.S. Army M88 Hercules submerged under
several meters of water in a swamp near a training area near Pabadre,
Lithuania, Thursday, March 27, 2025. (Christopher Saundersn/U.S. Army
via AP) |
|
The soldiers were on a training exercise at the massive General
Silvestras Žukauskas training ground in the town of Pabradė when
they and their vehicle were reported missing in the early hours
of Tuesday morning, the U.S. army said.
“Until the investigators have more details, we need to stay calm
and focused, and keep in mind the sensitivity of the situation
and the concerns of the soldiers’ families,” Šakalienė posted on
Facebook.
She made clear to reporters that the first information about
fate of the soldiers will be delivered by the U.S. army.
The soldiers, all from 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, were
conducting tactical training when they went missing.
Hundreds of Lithuanian and U.S. soldiers and rescuers took part
in the search through the thick forests and swampy terrain
around Pabradė, which lies just 10 kilometers (6 miles) west of
the border with Belarus. The M88 Hercules armored vehicle was
discovered on Wedneday submerged in 4.5 meters (15 feet) of
water.
A large-scale recovery operation got underway but “water, thick
mud and soft ground around the site have complicated recovery
efforts and have required specialized equipment to drain water
from the side and stabilize the ground” in order to pull the
70-ton vehicle ashore, the army said.
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