2 Soldiers Killed, 3 Injured in ‘Weather-Related’ Incident While Training in Georgia

Lorenz Duchamps
By Lorenz Duchamps
August 10, 2022US News
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2 Soldiers Killed, 3 Injured in ‘Weather-Related’ Incident While Training in Georgia
U.S. Army soldiers take part in a ceremony on Sept. 11, 2017. (Yuriy Dyachyshyn/AFP via Getty Images)

Two Georgia-based soldiers died and three others were injured in a weather-related incident on Tuesday while training on Yonah Mountain in the northern part of Atlanta, the U.S. Army confirmed Tuesday.

A spokesperson for the Army told FOX5 Atlanta that the deceased soldiers were part of the training program at the Maneuver Center of Excellence. Their names have not been released.

The three other injured service members were treated by Army medics before being transported to an area hospital. Their conditions were not immediately available.

Details about what happened, or the cause of the weather-related incident, have not been released by the Army.

Shortly after 3 p.m. on Tuesday, FOX5 Atlanta tracked a severe thunderstorm that prompted a warning from the National Weather Service. The storm, which was brewing over the mountain Tuesday afternoon, was capable of producing quarter-size hail and 60 mph winds.

Mike LeFevre, the fire chief of White County, told the network that firefighters received a report of downed trees on the mountain, but there were no reports of injuries associated with it.

The Army conducts training on Yonah Mountain including the Ranger School’s Mountain Phase. Soldiers who train on the mountain typically will report out of Camp Merrill in the northern part of the state.

Yonah Mountain is about 70 miles northeast of Atlanta and 170 miles northeast of Fort Benning.

This is the second deadly incident involving soldiers stationed in Georgia in the past month.

In late July, Sgt. 1st Class Michael D. Clark was killed by a lightning strike at Fort Gordon near Augusta. Nine other soldiers were also injured in the incident.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.