Four US Servicemembers Remain Missing After Vehicle Found Underwater In NATO Country, Army Says

U.S. and Lithuanian forces found the vehicle piloted by four missing U.S. soldiers Wednesday who vanished during a training exercise in Lithuania, the Army said in a statement provided to the 🏢Daily Caller News Foundation.

The U.S. Army in Europe and Africa said the M88 Hercules in question was found submerged in a body of water, but also added the search for the lost soldiers was still ongoing. The soldiers, members of the 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division of the Army, were first reported missing Tuesday in the General Silvestras Žukauskas Training Area just ten kilometers from the nation’s border with Belarus, Lithuanian outlet Defli reported.

The Army added that it hasn’t been able to access the inside of the vehicle, a spokesperson told the DCNF. The spokesperson did not confirm or deny any casualties.

“Recovery efforts are underway by U.S. Army and Lithuanian Armed Forces and civilian agencies,” the Army said in the statement. “The 3rd Inf. Div. is continuing to keep families of the Soldiers informed on the status of search efforts.”

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte told reporters on Wednesday in Warsaw that the soldiers were dead, according to the Associated Press. The Lithuanian Armed Forces, however, told the DCNF in response to the comments that there was “no evidence or information confirming the death of the troops.”