April 15, 2025
Santa Teresa, NM – Two U.S. service members had been killed and a 3rd was significantly injured in a car accident on Tuesday morning close to the U.S.-Mexico border in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, in accordance with the USA Northern Command (NORTHCOM). The incident, which occurred round 8:50 a.m. MDT, concerned three members of the Joint Job Power Southern Border, a army unit deployed to help border safety operations.
NORTHCOM confirmed the fatalities in a press release, noting that the third service member was transported to a neighborhood hospital in severe situation. The names of the deceased haven’t been launched pending notification of subsequent of kin. The reason for the accident, which happened roughly 13 miles northwest of El Paso, Texas, is beneath investigation. A protection official, talking anonymously, clarified that the incident concerned a civilian car and no civilians had been harmed.
The accident marks the primary publicly disclosed fatalities related to the U.S. army’s border mission, which has seen over 10,000 active-duty troops approved for deployment. The mission, intensified beneath President Donald Trump’s current government orders, goals to curb immigration and drug trafficking. Since his January 20, 2025, inauguration, Trump has declared a nationwide emergency on the southern border, citing an “invasion,” and mobilized practically 3,000 further troops, together with parts of a Stryker brigade fight group and a basic help aviation battalion, as ordered by Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth in March.
Native authorities, together with the Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Workplace, reported that the injured service members had been airlifted to a hospital by helicopter. The crash occurred close to the Santa Teresa Border Patrol station, near Fort Bliss, a key Military set up supporting the border mission with deportation flights and tools staging.
Public response has been considered one of grief and scrutiny. New Mexico Senator Ben Ray Luján expressed heartbreak, providing prayers for the injured service member and the households of the deceased. Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow on the American Immigration Council, referred to as for a congressional investigation into the need of the army’s presence on the border, reflecting broader debates concerning the mission’s scope and dangers. Posts on X echoed this sentiment, with customers lamenting the lack of service members in a non-combat setting and questioning the deployment’s objective.
Critics argue that the militarization of the border, pushed by Trump’s insurance policies just like the controversial use of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 (at the moment blocked in federal courtroom), locations service members in high-risk environments with out clear strategic good points. Supporters, nevertheless, view the deployment as important to nationwide safety, aligning with Trump’s hardline immigration stance. The incident underscores the human price of those operations, elevating questions on their long-term sustainability.
The investigation into the crash continues, with NORTHCOM promising updates as extra info turns into obtainable. For additional particulars, go to www.northcom.mil.
