The US Navy diver installed two lines at the hoist point of a sinking M88 Hercules armored recovery vehicle that carried four US soldiers who disappeared early Tuesday during a training exercise near Pabrado, Lithuania.
Soldiers based at Fort Stewart, Georgia, were on vehicles on a planned maintenance mission and disappeared when they recovered another US military vehicle in the training area.
After the second line was attached to the hoist point in Hercules on Sunday, the Army said the vehicle could be locked to prevent further sinking into the wetlands.
“The engineers are hoping to start winching early this morning.” US Army Europe and Africa I mentioned it in X's post. “This process is expected to cost a considerable amount of time and effort as the terrain surrounding peat marsh remains challenging, but rescuers will not be blocked.”
Lithuanians, Polish troops help “search and recover” of four missing soldiers from Fort Stewart
The crew continues to search for the missing crew of Hercules, who has gone missing in Lithuania. (US military)
Earlier in the day, divers had tied the initial line to the Hercules hoist point, but Winch's efforts were expected to take longer than expected, as both lines were installed due to pressure from the mud and the amount of suction, the Army noted.
US Army operations in Europe and Africa said in a press release that Hercules continued to sink into the swamp. The vehicle was estimated to be about 4 meters below the surface of the water and was wrapped in about 2 meters of mud.
To aid in drilling and pumping operations, a rapidly available interface for the transformer load (rail) system was expected to arrive at the scene later that day.
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The US recovery terrain vehicle recovered from Lithuania's peat marsh after a US Navy diver installed two lines on the vehicle on Sunday is being recovered from Lithuania's peat marsh. (US military)
Train systems have traditionally been used to help offload and on-load rail networks over challenging terrain, but engineers thought it would help stabilize the ground around the recovery site.
“It's very complicated to try to reach the vehicle itself in the terrain here and where the M88 sits in a marsh-like area beneath the wetlands. So we're not only dealing with the terrain, but also the fact that it's 70 tons trying to recover from the swamps and swamps,” General John Lloyd, commander of the US Army Corps of Engineers North Atlantic Division.
In an interview with Fox News Digital on Thursday afternoon, Lithuanian Defense Minister Doville Shakarien said from the moment the country learned of the incident it “given everything” to find soldiers, both from the military and the Ministry of Home Affairs agencies.
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US Army M88 Hercules Armored Vehicle on March 27th, near Pabrado, Lithuania. Lithuanians across the nation and local governments searched four missing US soldiers from the 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division and were found to have been submerged near the last location of a known location on March 26, seeking subsequent recovery efforts for the M88 Hercules armored vehicle. (Lithuanian Army)
“From a helicopter with thermal vision to applying force to the ground, we're continuing to be extremely intense,” Shakarien said.
Shakalien said it is unclear whether the soldiers were able to escape the vehicle before it sunk, but reiterated that as of Thursday afternoon, “there are no evidence” confirming the death of the missing soldier.
The area surrounding this location is a forested area with marsh and marsh, similar to the environment found in Alaska. The weather conditions are similar, making it a challenging training area for Army personnel.
“Maybe they're lost, confused, hurt, or hypothermia, and we haven't found it yet,” Shakarien said. “But we haven't lost hope until the last moment. These are strong soldiers, strong, grown men. All scenarios are possible.”
Searching four missing American soldiers from training areas in Lithuania 'Ongoing': NATO
Lithuanian military and law enforcement personnel observe recovery efforts as excavators gather soil on March 26th near Pabrad, Lithuania. Lithuanians from across the country and local governments found them submerged near the last location of a potential location on March 26, in sought efforts to recover four missing US soldiers from the 1st Brigade, the 3rd Infantry Division, and the armored vehicles of the M88 Hercules. (Lithuanian Army)
She added that NATO member Lithuania would consider American soldiers to their own and would not leave them behind.
Despite continued efforts, the soldiers have not yet been found.
The US Army's 3rd Infantry Division continues to update the Soliders' family in searches.
“This tragic situation weighs heavily on us all, and we are keeping our soldiers and our recovery team family, friends and teammates in our thoughts and prayers,” Major General Curtis Taylor, commander of the 1st Armored Division, wrote in a statement last week. “We want everyone to know that we won't stop until we find our soldiers.”
President Donald Trump told reporters Wednesday that the missing soldier had not been described.
The training site is less than six miles from Belarus, a Russian ally since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1990.
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Lithuania, a Catholic country, organized a communal prayer at the capital Cathedral, the main church on Sunday, and held a mass for missing soldiers.
Alexandra Koch and Landon Mion of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
