A military training exercise on Wednesday night at the base of Camp Shelby, Mississippi, left at least eight injured paratroopers and others hanging from the trees, according to an army official, quoted by CNN.
At least four of the paratroopers were taken to the emergency department at the General Forrest hospital in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and others could continue to arrive, the spokeswoman for that sanitary facility, Millie Swan, told the media.
The authorities still do not know what went wrong during the night jump to end in these circumstances, because the weather was good and the aircraft landed without any setback after the paratroopers jumped.
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The members of the Combat Team of the 4th. Brigade, belonging to the 25th Alaska Infantry Division, were performing night parachute jumps at the Camp Shelby Joint Forces Training Center, as reported by Captain Ashley Sangster, spokesman for the division, cited by CNN.
As part of the exercise, three planes were operating near two jump sites and the accident occurred on the first pass to one of the zones. 84 members of the infantry should have jumped but so far only 83 have been counted and four of them are being taken down from trees. Base officials are conducting a search and rescue operation. At first they reported that only 75 had been located.
Some soldiers suffered limb injuries due to a difficult landing, but none of the injuries are life-threatening, Sangster said.
In a Facebook post, the Combat Team of the 4th. Brigade (Airborne) of the 25th Division had reported that this Wednesday began a 10-day training exercise with 650 soldiers. The publication added that the hospital had been notified in advance of possible injuries and that emergency vehicles were ready for any accident.
"Airborne operations carry an inherent risk. We strive to mitigate this risk as much as possible," the team said on Facebook. "Once all the soldiers have been found, our goal is ultimately to continue training. Despite the challenges we face right now, the soldiers always put the mission first."
Camp Shelby is a military post located on the southern border of Hattiesburg, with more than 134,000 acres of land.
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