The military has launched an investigation into the weekend death of a Marine at Miramar Air Base. Lance Corporal J. Gomez was killed early Saturday when the seven-ton truck he was in flipped over. KPBS radio's Andrea Hsu has more.
The accident happened at about 3 a.m. during a routine training exercise. Gomez was the only fatality. Another 19 members of his reservist unit, the 4th Tank Battalion, were injured. Six are still in the hospital. Major Todd Sudmeyer of the 4th Battalion says Miramar's Marine Command and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service are looking into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Sudmeyer: The investigation determines -- are we in line with current policy, are we following procedures, are those procedures adequate, and what can we do better next time.
Major Sudmeyer expects a report from the investigation to be completed in two to four weeks. He adds that it's not uncommon for Marines to be training in the middle of the night. Given present and future threats, he says, they must be prepared to operate in a 24-7 environment.
For KPBS News, I'm Andrea Hsu.
