AIR TRAGEDY
Three dead in National Guard helicopter crash in Texas with haunting photo of wreck just two weeks after Apache tragedy
One person is clinging to life after the crash
TWO US soldiers and a Border Patrol agent have died in a horrific helicopter crash in Texas.
The National Guard chopper went down near the US-Mexico border on Friday, just two weeks after another deadly National Guard helicopter crash.
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Three National Guard members and a Border Patrol agent were on the UH-72 Lakota helicopter when it crashed near Rio Grande City just before 4 pm local time.
One soldier survived the crash and was rushed to the hospital.
Three men and one woman were onboard the aircraft, officials said.
In a written statement to the U.S. Sun, the National Guard confirmed that an investigation is underway into the cause of the accident.
Further, the names of the victims will not be released until their next of kin can be notified.
The helicopter was on federal orders working with Border Patrol and was not part of the state's Operation Lone Star border enforcement plan, a Texas Department of Public Safety spokesperson told local NBC affiliate .
Multiple agencies are investigating the cause of the crash.
The UH-72 Lakota helicopter is known for being a lightweight utility craft used globally for a range of duties from emergency transportation to corporate travel.
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Former Texas Republican congresswoman Mayra Flores Vallejo spoke out on X, formerly Twitter, to call for prayers for the dead and injured.
"I am asking for a prayer request and support for Border Patrol and CBP Air and Marine Operations. A tragic helicopter crash just happened near La Grulla, Texas. My thoughts and prayers are with you," she wrote.
Two Mississippi National Guardsmen dead after Apache AH-64 helicopter crashes during military training flight
The tragic deaths come after two National Guardsmen were killed in a helicopter crash during a training exercise two weeks earlier.
On February 23, an Apache AH-64 helicopter crashed in Mississippi in a forested area near Boonville.
The two victims were identified as Chief Warrant Officer 4 Bryan Andrew Zemek, 36, and Chief Warrant Officer 4 Derek Joshua Abbott, 42.
Days earlier, on February 12, another Apache crashed near Salt Lake City, Utah.
The pilots in that crash survived, which noted is rare in rotary-wing aircraft wrecks.
Following the back-to-back crashes in February, the Army National Guard grounded all of its helicopters.
"We are a combat force with helicopters training or on mission worldwide every day," Lt. Gen. Jon Jensen, director of the Army National Guard, said in a .
"Safety is always at the top of our minds. We will stand down to ensure our crews are prepared as well as possible for whatever they're asked to do."
Helicopters were ungrounded on a case-by-case basis as personnel completed mandatory safety training.
“Units and crews will be allowed to resume flying once they’ve completed the directed review of safety policies and procedures,” Capt. Jamie Mason, an Army National Guard spokesman, at the time.
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The US National Guard has yet to respond to a request for comment by The U.S. Sun on the latest crash.
The military is still reeling after five marines were killed in another helicopter crash in California in February, and eight airmen were killed in a training accident off the coast of Japan in December.
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