A U.S. Marine Corps artillery round prematurely detonated over Interstate 5 on Saturday sending metal shrapnel onto a California Highway Patrol (CHP) vehicle during a live-fire training demonstration, according to an internal report released Sunday by the agency. No injuries were reported.
The exercise took place over a section of I-5 near Camp Pendleton, which had been closed to traffic at the direction of California Gov. Gavin Newsom. The governor had previously voiced concerns about the safety of firing artillery shells over a freeway used daily by tens of thousands of motorists.
CHP officers were on the scene supporting a traffic break when the round detonated. “This was an unusual and concerning situation,” said CHP Border Division Chief Tony Coronado. “It is highly uncommon for any