Features

Oct. 23, 2014
OH, DEER! - It's motorcycle vs. nature in highway mishap

On a beautiful spring day May 7 in Autauga County, Ala., I had just started my morning motorcycle ride into work as a student at Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala. I turned off of County Road 40 onto County Road 85 and was about five minutes into my commute when I settled
Oct. 20, 2014
MAN on WIRE - Pilot overcomes losing legs after crashing plane into power lines

After a plane crash, nine days in a coma and 28 surgeries, including a double amputation of his legs, retired Capt. David Berling understands what it means to overcome adversity.On April 29, 2007, Berling flew his private plane into a power line, just 20 seconds from landing at Hawthorne Municipal
Aug. 27, 2014
NINE FEET TO AGONY - Fall from ladder shatters man's heel bone into nine pieces

I couldn't catch my breath to scream for help. The unbearable pain in my left foot was unlike anything else I had ever endured. It felt like my foot exploded while being crushed in a vice. I don't remember how long it took me before I could call out "Karen!" to my wife, who was working in the
Aug. 27, 2014
MISSING DAN - When a violent twister battered a small town in Arkansas, a dad's heroic efforts to save his children cost him his own life

As a tornado demolished Master Sgt. Dan Wassom's house, he and his wife, Suzanne, tried to protect their 5- and 7-year-old daughters by using their own bodies as shields. It worked. Their children survived. But one of the parents didn't make it.With winds reaching nearly 200 mph, the devastating
Aug. 27, 2014
'Be Brilliant in the Basics' - Safety commander discusses how to deal with tough times

Multiple sexual assault incidents, academic cheating accusations, sequestration, less money, and people worrying about whether or not they will have a job tomorrow are all adding stress to a force already being stretched by a high volume of deployments. Since increased stress and distractions are
Oct. 21, 2013
SEVEN! (UPDATE) - Group of Airmen conquers tallest peaks on every continent

They did it!The Seven Summits Challenge team, a group of Airmen who dedicated themselves to conquering the tallest peaks on each of the seven continents, finished their quest. And they saved the tallest for last, reaching the summit of Mount Everest May 20.Torch first reported on the team's quest in
Oct. 21, 2013
THE ITSY BITSY SPIDER - Man has deadly reaction to black widow bite

He sat in the hospital waiting room clenching his teeth and clutching the sides of his chair as each muscle spasm sent shock waves of agony through his entire body. Dripping with sweat, he worried that with the venom's entry point on his stomach, it only had a short distance to reach his heart.Derek
Oct. 21, 2013
NIGHT FLYING MISSIONS VS MEXICAN FREE-TAILED BATS - Twenty million tiny bats living 11 miles from Randolph pose a giant risk to base aircraft

Located about 11 miles northwest of Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph, Texas, is the true "bat cave." Bracken Cave nests millions of migratory Mexican free-tailed bats from March to October and is the largest bat and mammalian colony on earth. The majority of the bats in Bracken Cave are females
Oct. 21, 2013
SLIDING INTO HYPOTHERMIA - Officer saves teenager's life at remote California waterfall

During Labor Day weekend in early September, Maj. Jaesin White and his family set out on a hike to a popular swimming hole in the Sierra foothills of Northern California. They never suspected the path they followed into the woods that day would lead them to a teenage girl who would need their help
Oct. 21, 2013
OF BIKES AND BRAINS - Driving a motorcycle while drunk shattered an Airman's skull and wrecked his career

May 27, 2012, is a day that Tech. Sgt. Mark Hopkins will never forget -- even though it's a day he can barely remember.It was the day he made a choice that drastically altered his life forever ... and almost ended it in the process."All I remember is hopping on my motorcycle around noon on my way to

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