2 Army soldiers killed in Alaska as tactical vehicle flips in Yukon training site
A U.S. Army vehicle flipped over on Monday, killing two service members and injuring 12 others in the Yukon Training Area in Alaska, Army officials said.
The vehicle, a Light Medium Tactical Vehicle, or LMTV, had been carrying 17 soldiers on the outskirts of Salcha, Alaska, military officials said in a statement on Monday.
The crash involved only one vehicle, they said.
"First responders reached the scene and extracted the personnel and provided on-scene medical treatment until the soldiers could be medically evacuated by ground and air to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital in Fairbanks," the statement said.
On Wednesday, the Army released the names of the two soldiers killed in the accident – Spc. Jeremy Daniel Evans, 23, from Knoxville, Tennessee, and Spc. Brian Joshua Snowden, 22, of Lonedell, Missouri. Both men joined the Army in 2020 and trained at Fort Moore in Georgia, relocating to Alaska in early 2021.
“This is an incredible loss for all of us across the division,” Maj. Gen. Brian Eifler, commanding general of the 11th Airborne Division, said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families, friends, and fellow soldiers of Spc. Evans and Spc. Snowden.”
He also noted in his statement that resources were available for the soldiers and their families in Alaska following the incident.
Of the 12 injured, eight were treated and released the same day. Two of the 12 remain in stable condition at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital, while another two are in stable condition at Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage.
The troops had been in the Yukon Training Area, an about 257,000-acre expanse in the Middle Tanana Valley, according to the military. The area sits just east of Eielson Air Force Base and about 30 miles from Fort Wainwright.
The incident remains under investigation.
