The United States military confirmed on Thursday that recovery efforts for the four missing U.S. soldiers and the submerged M88 Hercules armored vehicle that was found near Pabradė, Lithuania, remain ongoing.
In a Thursday press release, U.S. Army Europe and Africa announced that “efforts continue” by both U.S. and Lithuanian personnel as the four U.S. Army soldiers still remain missing.
“We are leveraging every available U.S. and Lithuanian asset to coordinate for and provide the required resources for this effort,” U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commanding general of the 1st Armored Division, said.
U.S. Army Europe and Africa noted that the four U.S. soldiers, who are all from the 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, have been “missing since the early hours of March 25 while conducting a maintenance mission to recover another U.S. Army vehicle in the training area during scheduled unit training.” Officials confirmed that search and recovery efforts for the missing soldiers have “continued without pause” despite initial reports that the four soldiers died during a training mission.
According to Thursday’s press release, the M88 Hercules armored vehicle was found Wednesday morning “submerged in a body of water” following a search by the U.S. Army, the Lithuanian Armed Forces, and other Lithuanian officials.
READ MORE: 4 US soldiers missing in Lithuania amid reports they died in training mission
U.S. Army Europe and Africa explained that the recovery of the submerged military vehicle has been “complicated” due to “the challenges presented by the water, thick mud and soft ground around the site.” Officials noted that the recovery effort has required “specialized equipment to drain water from the side and stabilize the ground.”
“Due to the terrain, this is an incredibly complex engineering effort. The team on the ground is working to remove enough water and mud for rescue teams to safely reach, stabilize, and access the vehicle,” Maj. Robin Bruce, 1st Armored Division Engineer, said.
“Lithuanian and U.S. Army engineers are currently pumping water and excavating mud from the site and making improvements to the surrounding area to support the heavy equipment needed for recovery,” Burce added. “The team is exploring every available option to speed up this process.”
Lithuanian Defense Minister Dovile Sakaliene told ABC News on Thursday that the M88 Hercules armored vehicle could be roughly five meters below the surface of the water and that recovery crews have been faced with a “a mix of muddy water and sludge.”
“Hundreds of people are working around the clock — American armed forces, our rescue services and private companies,” Sakaliene added. “We have helicopters in the air, divers, firefighters, canal excavation machines — hundreds and hundreds of people.”
A video and pictures shared on X, formerly Twitter, show the challenging recovery efforts for the M88 Hercules armored vehicle.
