On Wednesday morning, a military helicopter that had been missing was located in Southern California, according to the U.S. Marine Corps. Some hours later, the five Marines who were on board were all found dead.
The CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter was declared “overdue” from Marine Corps Air Station Miramar on Tuesday night. It had departed from Creech Air Force Base near Las Vegas and was heading to Miramar, located in the San Diego area. The Marines sought assistance from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and Civil Air Patrol.
The sheriff’s department received a call at 1:50 a.m. and dispatched its own helicopter for search operations. However, due to the atmospheric river storm affecting the region, the helicopter was unable to reach the designated area. Consequently, off-road vehicles were deployed to navigate the challenging terrain.
At 9:08 a.m. on Wednesday, the helicopter was located, as reported by the Marines. President Joe Biden has been briefed on the situation, confirmed White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
“We’re closely monitoring the situation,” stated White House national security spokesperson John Kirby. “Our thoughts are with the best possible outcome.”
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