Major highway in California to shut down as US marines fire live artillery over it | San Diego
Celebrations of the 250th anniversary of U.S. Marines will shut down a major highway artery through southern California on Saturday as the military plans to fire live 155mm artillery shells into the field.
california highway patrol announced its closure At 6 a.m. Saturday, it said it would close about 17 miles (27 km) of Interstate 5 near Camp Pendleton, a 125,000-acre (50,585 hectares) base in Oceanside in northwestern San Diego County, for four hours. The ban will be valid between 11.00-15.00.
That event will include a real-time amphibious talent demonstration at Red Beach. according to a statement From the US Navy. J.D. Vance, a former Marine who served in Iraq, is scheduled to meet with at least 15,000 sailors, sailors, veterans and families expected to attend. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will also make statements.
“The capability demonstration will include integrated Navy and Marine Corps operations in air, land and sea,” the Marine Corps statement said.
The US Marine Corps insisted that the event would comply with established safety protocols and that “no public highways or transportation routes will be closed.”
In its statement, CHP stated that the military event would include “the firing of live ammunition onto the highway by the federal government” and called for the temporary closure of part of the highway due to the security risk and distraction of drivers.
Earlier in the week, California governor Gavin Newsom condemned plans to fire live rounds on Interstate 5, calling it an “absurd show of force” and “completely unwarranted.”
On Saturday morning, Newsom was concerned the demonstration could endanger Californians. “Providing live tours of a busy highway without coordination between state, federal and local partners is not only wrong, it is dangerous,” Newsom said on social media.
The criticism underscored growing tensions between Donald Trump and California’s governor, who has frequently called out the presidential administration’s decisions.
This celebration was not exempt from Newsom’s wrath. “Using our military to intimidate people with whom you disagree politically does not make you look strong,” Newsom said. “This makes you look weak. This is reckless, disrespectful and, again, unbecoming of the presidency.”
In early October, the navy hosted the president aboard an aircraft carrier off the coast of Virginia to mark the same military anniversary. Trump turned this event into a political rally.
This show of force coincides with No Kings rallies and marches held across the US, including several locations in California, and stands behind the message that the country’s slide into authoritarian rule under Trump must be stopped.
Newsom warned those attending the rallies: “I call on our nation to use this weekend’s No Kings marches as a declaration of independence against the tyranny and lawlessness that rules this country. Use your voice. ACT PEACEFULLY. Protect yourself and your community. THERE ARE NO KINGS IN THE USA.”
Vance’s spokesman, William Martin, told the New York Times that Newsom misled the public about the security risk of Saturday’s event. He said it was routine training.
“If Gavin Newsom wants to oppose the training exercises that enable our Armed Forces to be the deadliest, most lethal fighting force in the world, then he can go ahead,” Martin said.
California transportation department spokesman Matt Rocco said: “This is all because of a military incident directed by the White House, for the safety of the public we need to close the highway because they are sending live ammunition onto the highway.”
Rocco said closing I5 could cost an additional two hours of travel time for those traveling between San Diego and Los Angeles. According to the governor’s office, the highway carries 80,000 passengers and $94 million worth of freight through the corridor per day. Passenger rail services running parallel to I5 were also canceled in the afternoon.
