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What’s up with the military trains rumbling again through Orange County

April 3, 2026

Trains carrying military equipment on flat railbed cars have been seen rumbling through Orange County over the past week, leaving folks wondering what’s up.

On Tuesday, a 70-railcar BNSF train was spotted heading north, passing by the San Clemente pier. Not long after, it was seen again in Irvine, heading north along tracks at Sand Canyon Avenue near the 405 freeway.

That’s where Les Goldberg spotted it and described it as “very long, carrying desert-camouflage armored tanks, personnel carriers, fuel tankers and various equipment used in ground combat ops, like jeeps, troop trucks, and other field gear.”

Given the current war against Iran, Goldberg said he wondered if the equipment movement was related.

“It was a Deja vu moment,” he said. “All I could think about was my memories of the first Gulf War when trains loaded with desert camouflage equipment were being shipped to the Middle East! My thoughts also turned to the president’s words that he was considering boots on the ground in Iran.”

The train, it turns out, is carrying deployment gear home from the Port of San Diego to Fort Carson, Colorado. It is the fifth train in a series of long trains carrying enough gear to field brigade-level training, said Fred Rice, spokesperson for the U.S. Army Transportation Command, which oversees all ground transport of military equipment.

“It is one of many that have or will go through Orange County over the course of the next two weeks,” he said.

The equipment belongs to the Army’s 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, which is headquartered in Fort Carson and just returning from South Korea, he said.

Equipped with armored Stryker vehicles, the brigade specializes in combined arms and often deploys on overseas rotations. Known as the “Raider Brigade,” it consists of six subordinate units, including infantry battalions, a field artillery regiment, an engineer battalion, and a support battalion.

Given the massive amount of equipment, Rice said it takes a lot to move everything. At least four more trains are expected to pass through in the next two weeks.

“Economically, it’s far better to transport military vehicles by train than by trucks,” he said.

While in this case, the equipment is heading to Colorado, other times, military equipment traveling through the area might be transferring to or from a training area or military base in the region, Rice said.

The rail corridor through Orange County connects to lines that feed Fort Irwin, Fort Riley and two bases in Yuma, Ariz.

Orange County Register

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What’s up with the military trains rumbling again through Orange County

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