Military member dies in incident at Vandenberg Space Force Base

A military member stationed at Vandenberg Space Force Base died on Thursday morning, but few details about the incident were available.

The incident occurred at the sprawling military installation at approximately 11:30 a.m.

The service member was pronounced dead at the scene by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office Coroner’s Bureau, base representatives said Thursday afternoon.

“We are absolutely devastated by the loss of one of our own,” said Col. James Horne, commander of Space Launch Delta 30. “Our prayers are immediately with the parents and loved ones receiving this heartbreaking news. We mourn alongside them, and we are mobilizing every resource to support them.”

The service member’s name, rank and hometown were withheld pending notification of next of kin.

Covering more than 100,000 acres in north Santa Barbara County, Vandenberg primarily has military members from the U.S. Space Force and Air Force.

— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com.

This story was originally published July 17, 2026 at 9:52 AM with the headline "Military member dies in incident at Vandenberg Space Force Base."