Vilnius sends solemn farewell to fallen American soldiers
A ceremony took place in Vilnius on Thursday to bid farewell to the four American soldiers who died at the training ground in Pabrade. Thousands of people paid tribute to the soldiers by accompanying the funeral procession.
On Thursday, April 3, in Vilnius, a ceremony took place to bid farewell to the four American soldiers who died at the training ground in Pabrade. Thousands of people gathered on the streets to say goodbye to the soldiers, as limousines with coffins passed in the funeral procession toward the airport.
A sad ceremony in Vilnius
During the ceremony, the memory of Edvin Ben Franco, Jose Duenez, Dante Gogo Taitano, and Troy Smith Knutson-Collins was honoured with a minute of silence. The Archbishop of Vilnius, apostolic administrator of the Military Ordinariate of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, Gintaras Gruszas, blessed the coffins with the soldiers' remains.
The ceremony was attended by the President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nauseda, and his spouse, the Commander of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, Gen. Raimundas Vaiksznoras, Speaker of the Seimas, Saulius Skvernelis, Minister of National Defence, Dovile Szakaliene, and other members of the Lithuanian government. Ambassadors and officials were also present.
Tragic accident at the training ground
The soldiers died on March 25 when their M88 Hercules recovery vehicle was sent to perform a task. After a week-long rescue operation, the vehicle with three bodies was retrieved on March 31, and the fourth body was found on April 1.
At the request of the US Armed Forces, only fellow service members from the unit in which the fallen served attended the ceremony at the airport.
The Pabrade training ground, where about 1,000 American soldiers are stationed, is located approximately 15-19 kilometres from the border with Belarus.
Source: Polish Press Agency
