2 service members killed in accident at US-Mexico border

Two U.S. service members were killed and a third is in “serious condition” after being involved in a vehicle accident near the U.S.-Mexico border, the military said in a release Tuesday night.

The accident happened at about 8:50 a.m. local time Tuesday near Santa Teresa, N.M., according to the Joint Task Force-Southern Border. The cause of the accident is under investigation. The military did not release the names of the individuals involved.

The military’s Northern Command said the three service members were deployed to back the Joint Task Force-Southern Border, which assumed control of the southern border mission on March 14.

The service members were deployed in the area after President Trump’s executive order “Protecting the American People Against Invasion.”

In early March, the Pentagon said it would send more than 5,000 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border. Stryker brigade combat team and a general support aviation battalion were dispatched, the Defense Department said at the time.

The accident occurred near the Santa Teresa Border Patrol Station on Highway 9 at mile marker 115, KTSM reported.

The three service members involved in the crash were Marines, according to a 1st Marine Division spokesperson. The third Marine, who is in “critical” condition, is being treated at a local hospital, 1st Marine Division’s Capt. Charles Kimbrough told The Hill.

“I am very saddened to learn of the tragic accident yesterday that took the lives of two of our nation’s heroes and seriously injured another,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a Wednesday post on social media platform X. “My heartfelt condolences and prayers are with them, their families, and the unit.”

Updated at 5:05 p.m. ET.