Stories from Wednesday, October 17, 2001

Mountain Home will host a brief stop as the Olympic Torch Relay travels on the way to Salt Lake City's Olympic Stadium for the 2002 Winter Games. Nearly 30 runners are expected to carry the Olympic Flame through the streets of Mountain Home on the morning of Jan. 26, with five runners coming from the local area...

The Elmore County Commissioners used local property tax dollars, in part, to help pay for the purchase of handguns for their personal security, the Mountain Home News has learned. Commissioner Craig McCurry, who seemed genuinely surprised at the revelation, admitted that the commissioners had "made a mistake" in the acquisition of the handguns...

Mountain Home AFB has again been tasked to help wage the war on terrorism with deployment orders issued last Friday morning to the 391st Fighter Squadron of the 366th Wing. Citing the usual security concerns, base officials declined to say how many aircraft flew out of Mountain Home over the weekend, where they were going, and how many personnel from the squadron and support services that might be needed were sent to the war on terrorism...

A death that was tragic locally has become, through the national spotlight, a symbol of the war on terrorism. MSgt. Evander Andrews, 36, of Moutain Home Air Force Base, has been designated by the national media as the first military casualty in the war on terrorism since the Sept 11 terrorist strikes on America...