A soldier killed Sunday and another on Monday evening in training center accidents were both assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas, according to Army releases.
Pfc. Andrew Ortega, 32, died over the weekend at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, while another as-yet-unnamed soldier died the following day at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California.
“On behalf of the soldiers and families of Ironhorse [brigade], I extend my deepest condolences to Spc. Ortega’s family," the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team commander, Col. Wilson Rutherford IV, said in a release. “Andrew’s service and dedication to the brigade’s mission are displays of his true character and professionalism.”
His brigade arrived in Europe over the summer as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve.
Ortega, a New Mexico native, was a horizontal construction engineer on his first deployment. He joined the Army in fall 2016 and had been at Fort Hood since March 2017.
On Monday night, one soldier was killed and three more were injured in a Bradley Fighting Vehicle rollover at Fort Irwin, NTC spokesman Kenneth Drylie told Army Times on Tuesday.
The deceased soldier, whose 3rd Brigade Combat Team is doing a training rotation at the center, will be identified 24 hours after next-of-kin have been notified.
Two of the injured soldiers were treated on post at Weed Army Community Hospital, while a third was airlifted to the Loma Linda Medical Center 100 miles away, according to a Tuesday release from NTC.
The causes of the accidents are under investigation, according to the releases.
Meghann Myers is the Pentagon bureau chief at Military Times. She covers operations, policy, personnel, leadership and other issues affecting service members.
