Three 🇺🇸 soldiers were killed and another was injured Friday when a National Guard helicopter crashed in Texas, near the U.S.-Mexico border.
A UH-72 Lakota helicopter carrying three soldiers and a U.S. Border Patrol agent crashed around 2:50 p.m. local time while conducting operations near Rio Grande City, according to a news release from Joint Task Force North, based in Fort Bliss. Two of the soldiers and the agent were killed. The third soldier was injured.
The cause of the accident is under investigation, according to the release. A spokesman for the task force declined to comment on the condition of the injured soldier.
Joint Task Force North, which includes active and reserve military personnel, is tasked with supporting federal law enforcement agencies in stopping suspected criminal activities “within and along the approaches to the continental United States.”
The Starr County Sheriff’s Office earlier said in a short social media statement that it was assisting with a “downed helicopter incident,” possibly involving four occupants.
