Ceremony held Thursday for Fort Stewart soldiers killed in Lithuania

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - Vilnius held a ceremony Thursday morning to honor and bid farewell to the four U.S. soldiers who died during a training exercise at a military training area in eastern Lithuania.

The soldiers were members of the 3rd Infantry Division based at Fort Stewart.

A procession carrying the four 3rd Infantry Division soldiers who died last week in Lithuania proceeded past the capital’s cathedral square.

Government officials, religious leaders, military personal and civilians lined the streets as church bells tolled in remembrance of the servicemen.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, the defense minister and the Vilnius archbishop attended the ceremony.

An honor troop from the 3rd Infantry Division also paid tribute to the soldiers.

The 3rd Infantry Division identified the soldiers as Sgt. Jose Duenez, Jr., Sgt. Edvin F. Franco, Private First Class Dante D. Taitano, Staff Sgt. Troy S. Knutson-Collins.

Duenez Jr. was an M1 Abrams tank system maintainer with over seven years in the Army. He arrived at Fort Stewart in February 2022 and had previously been deployed to Poland and Germany.

Franco was an M1 Abrams tank system maintainer who served in the Army for over six years. He arrived at Fort Stewart in 2019 and had previously been deployed to Korea and Germany.

Taitano was a M1 Abrams tank system maintainer on his first deployment. He served in the Army for nearly two years, and he arrived at Fort Stewart in October 2023, following his entry training.

Knutson-Collins was an artillery mechanic with over seven years in the Army. He arrived at Fort Stewart in February 2018 and was assigned to 1st Battalion, 41st Field Artillery Regiment.

They were among 3,500 who deployed in January to various locations across Poland and the Baltic states for a nine-month rotation as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve in support of NATO.

The four soldiers went missing on March 25 during an exercise at the Pabradė training ground while operating an M88 Hercules armored recovery vehicle.

Search efforts lasted a week and involved Lithuanian, U.S., Polish, and Estonian military personnel, as well as police and civilians.

The armored vehicle, carrying three or the four soldiers inside, was recovered from a swamp on Monday, March 31. The fourth soldier was found the following day.

For anyone that was unable to watch the ceremony live, it is available below:

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