Marines Investigate Artillery Misfire Over California Highway

It looks like a "one-in-a-million" fuse failure caused this weekend's bizarre artillery misfire in California, one that led to shrapnel falling down on Interstate 5, reports the Washington Post. The Marine Corps has launched a formal investigation. The incident occurred during a military demonstration at Camp Pendleton on Saturday attended by Vice President JD Vance and other top officials. Nobody was injured, though a Highway Patrol car parked on an I-5 on-ramp got dented.

As the Los Angeles Times explains, an artillery shell fired by an M777 howitzer on a beach at the camp exploded in midair and rained down the shrapnel. The story notes that it's rare for live ammo to be fired during artillery training at the camp, given its location in Orange and San Diego counties. "It's a deviation from standard procedures," a source tells the newspaper. "It's really rare."

That's part of the reason the incident set off a furious back-and-forth between the White House and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who said the administration put "lives at risk to put on a show," per the Post. The White House referred specific questions about the event, designed to commemorate the Marines' 250th anniversary, to the Marines Corps itself, though spokesman Steven Cheung called Newsom "dumber than a box of rocks" after a post by the governor spelled "ordnance" incorrectly.