Three people were killed when a U.S. National Guard helicopter crashed Friday on the Texas southern border, officials said.

A UH-72 Lakota helicopter crashed just before 4 p.m., local time, while on a support mission near Rio Grande City along the U.S-Mexico border, according to a statement from Joint Task Force North.

Two soldiers and one U.S. Border Patrol agent were killed and another soldier was injured.

The cause is under investigation, JTF-North said. 

In a statement Saturday, President Biden said he and first lady Jill Biden "extend our deepest condolences to their families and loved ones, as well as their colleagues in the National Guard and U.S. Border Patrol. We pray for the injured Guardsman's swift recovery."

A National Guard spokesperson previously told CBS News that the helicopter went down in La Grulla, Texas, located about 40 miles west of the border city of McAllen.

— Camilo Montoya-Galvez contributed to this report. 

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to correctly identify the helicopter as a UH-72 Lakota.

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  • Helicopter Crash
  • Texas
Faris Tanyos

Faris Tanyos is a news editor for CBSNews.com, where he writes and edits stories and tracks breaking news. He previously worked as a digital news producer at several local news stations up and down the West Coast.

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