U.S. armored vehicle pulled from bog in Lithuania; Army to share update on missing troops
March 31 (UPI) -- A U.S. Army armored vehicle missing in Lithuania for six days with four American soldiers on board was pulled from a bog early Monday close to the border with Belarus, according to Lithuanian authorities. There was no immediate word about the fate of the missing military personnel.
Defense Minister Dovile Sakaliene in a social media post said Lithuanian Military Police and U.S. investigators were working at the scene after the 70-ton vehicle was winched free from beneath 15 feet of watery clay-like mud at a training ground near Pabrade, 30 miles northeast of Vilnius, at 4:30 a.m. local time.
"I ask for patience and concentration until they can provide us with more information about the situation," she said, stressing that Lithuanian authorities would not be commenting regarding the men on board and the U.S. side would make a public statement when it had all the necessary information and only after informing the families of the soldiers.
Sakaliene, who said it took two M88 Hercules-type recovery vehicles and two bulldozers six-and-half hours to pull out the armored vehicle, vowed that if the recovery of the armored vehicle did not provide all the answers to what happened, the work by the investigative teams would continue.
The recovery was carried out after divers managed to locate tow points on the submerged vehicle and attach lines.
Sakaliene appealed to the public and media to refrain from speculating.
"Please understand the delicacy of the situation, let us be sensitive to the families of the soldiers, who need to learn the circumstances of the events from rescuers, not from the media," she said.
"We are extremely grateful for the incredible work done by the Lithuanian and U.S. soldiers, the PAGD Fire and Rescue officers, the business employees and volunteers. To the countries that offered assistance and to those standing by to answer a call for assistance, as well."
U.S. Army Europe and Africa personnel and Lithuanian authorities led a five-day international recovery effort after the vehicle disappeared Tuesday while taking part in a tactical training exercise, mounting a major engineering and logistical operation involving experts from remote underwater vehicle specialists to geologists.
A U.S. Army Engineering Corps contingent and a 55-strong detachment of Polish military engineers packing more than a dozen tracked vehicles, including three M88-type recovery vehicles, joined the effort Friday, followed by a specialist U.S. Navy construction dive team on Saturday.
The engineers worked to pump water away from the site and stabilize the surrounding ground to allow it to support the heavy plant required to winch out the armored vehicle while the U.S. divers deployed a remotely operated submersible and handheld sonar to locate "lift points" on the vehicle.
The missing men are all believed to be from the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division, 1st Brigade, based out of Fort Stewart, Ga.
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