Oregon Air National Guard members depart for Florida

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Fifteen Oregon Air National Guard members have departed Oregon for Florida aboard a large transport plane to help with rescue operations and re-establish airfields that might be damaged by Hurricane Irma.

The members of the 125th Special Tactics Squadron left Portland, Oregon, after midnight Friday, bound for Hurlburt Field in the Florida panhandle. They brought three inflatable Zodiac boats with them on the C-17 plane.

The Oregon Military Department said some of the 15 airmen recently returned from supporting Hurricane Harvey relief efforts in Texas.