About 1,000 Florida National Guard troops with boats, generators, and high water vehicles have been activated in preparation for Tropical Storm Hermine, which is expected to make landfall south of Tallahassee late Thursday or early Friday, said Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis. Speaking at a press Pentagon briefing Thursday, Davis said an additional 6,000 Reservists will be on alert if needed as well as 3,400 from other states under the Emergency Management Assistance Compact. Maxwell AFB, Ala., will be a staging ground for storm response, said Davis, who noted that trucks and trailers already are stationed there. Eglin AFB, Fla., home of the 33rd Fighter Wing and 59 F-35s, declared Hurricane Condition 3 Thursday but announced that no aircraft had been moved in preparation for the storm.
Suicide rates in the Air Force are starting to drop after back-to-back years of exceptionally high rates as the department enacts new policies to address the problem. There were more than 100 suicides in the Air Force in both 2019 and 2020, causing leaders to order a “tactical pause” to…