Two Fort Wainwright soldiers were killed and 12 others were injured on Monday after an accident involving a military vehicle near Salcha.
John Pennell, a spokesman for the Army’s 11th Airborne Division, said the two soldiers who perished were among the 17 killed in a military vehicle that was destroyed on its way towards the army’s Yukon Training Area on Monday morning.
“There was a driver and an assistant driver. Then, 15 soldiers were seated in the back of the area of transport, and at some point, the vehicle left the roadway and flipped over,” Pennell said.
In an Army statement, the wounded were taken by air and by road into Fairbanks Memorial Hospital. Pennell added that two of those most seriously injured were later transferred to Anchorage.
The details of soldiers who died during the accident will not be released until they are informed of their families.
Alaska State Troopers, the North Pole Fire Department and Eielson Air Force Base were also involved in the incident.
An investigation is currently underway to determine the reason behind the crash that occurred in the midst of the season’s first snowfall, which fell in the region.
