No public warnings before Marines test-fired live munitions over busy Interstate 5, train lines
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New questions are emerging about why there were no public warnings before the U.S.Marines fired over Interstate 5 and a major regional commuter rail line as a test run a day before the 250th birthday celebration for the Corps at Camp Pendleton.Friday’s exercise occurred during normal freeway and train operations amid the evening commute — and without any of the precautions taken Saturday, when officials temporarily closed the 5 and suspended rail service.
On that day, shrapnel landed on a California Highway Patrol cruiser and motorcycle after an artillery shell exploded in midair prematurely, prompting an investigation from the Marines.Lt.Col.
Lindsay Pirek, a spokesperson for the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, told The Times Monday the Marines notified the state about plans for Friday’s launching of shells before it fired a total of 30 rounds from its M777 howitzers between 5 and 5:30 p.m.However, state sources told the Los Angeles Times that the messages the Marine Corps sent on Friday actually did not specify that artillery was being fired in a test run on Friday.
They said they did not interpret the request as an indication that live rounds would be fired over the freeway in the coming hours.As a consequence, thousands of rush-hour commuters and coastal rail passengers were unaware of the risk as multiple M777 howitzers fired a total of 30 shells over the freeway.“We did not receive a notification that weapons would be fired over the freeway during Friday’s rehearsal,” a spokesperson for the California State Transportation Agency told The Times.
The Times has asked the Marines Corps for comment and has yet to receive an answer.The California Department of Transportation captured video of rounds being fired from the M777 howitzers Friday.
“That’s the fourth shot over the freeway,” a man’s voice could be heard in a Caltrans video shared with reporters....