Braxton Taylor
Two Marines were killed after their civilian rental vehicle was involved in an incident Tuesday during a deployment to the southern U.S. border, according to a military news release and two defense officials who spoke to Military.com on the condition of anonymity as an investigation remains ongoing.
A third Marine was sent to a local medical facility in serious condition, according to the news release and the officials. The three service members were near Santa Teresa, New Mexico, just miles away from El Paso, Texas, and close to the border with Mexico when the incident occurred.
The incident occurred at around 8:50 a.m. Mountain Time on Tuesday, according to the news release from Joint Task Force-Southern Border that was issued the same day. JTF-SB is the entity charged with coordinating an increased military presence at the U.S. border with Mexico following an order by President Donald Trump in January.
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The service members were deployed in support of that mission, the statement said, adding that the incident is under investigation. It was unclear what caused the deadly vehicle accident, whether the Marines were on duty, or what they were specifically doing leading up to it.
The names of the deceased were being withheld until the military could notify their next of kin, the statement from JTF-SB continued, a common practice that gives the services time to notify family members of fatalities or injuries before troops’ identities are made public.
Representatives for JTF-SB did not respond to Military.com’s request for comment in time for publication.
The Marines were based out of California, according to one of the defense officials. The Washington Post and The New York Times also reported that the service members involved in the incident were Marines. The Post, citing three anonymous defense officials, said that the Marines were based out of Camp Pendleton.
The Associated Press reported that no civilians were harmed in the incident, citing an anonymous defense official.
Roughly 10,000 active-duty troops are deployed to the border as Trump’s administration aims for a historic crackdown on migration there. In late January, shortly after Trump took office, the military quickly sent more than 1,000 active-duty Marines and soldiers to various locations across the border.
Marines out of Camp Pendleton were sent primarily to San Diego, just south of their home installation. Initially, 500 Marines with the 1st Marine Division out of Pendleton were sent to California’s border with Mexico in an effort to repair barrier walls and lay down concertina wire there.
Units sent to the border are also operating in tactical vehicles, specifically soldiers using Strykers, eight-wheeled armored personnel carriers meant primarily to transport troops to and from their missions as they patrol the border.
Service members have also rented civilian SUVs and trucks to transport themselves to and from shifts where Marines are repairing the barrier and soldiers are manning observation posts to detect and monitor suspected illegal border crossings or smuggling.
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