Local Guard troops to deploy this summer

Army National Guard troops from York, Chester and Lancaster Counties are set to deploy this summer to Afghanistan, in for some, may be their third our fourth deployment overseas.

178th Engineer Battalion Command Sgt. Joe Medlin told WRHI late Tuesday the 160 troops come from very different backgrounds.

While an exact date for the battalion’s deployment has not been set, Medlin says training is already underway for the troops, with schedules advancing up to May.

Troop deployments historically have lasted up to or exceeding one year, but now, the Army has shortened them to 9 months.

Medlin says those nine months can still be very stressful on the soldiers — and their families.

The 178th will primarily be given construction assignments, and prior to their trip overseas, they will be assigned, as a unit, to a mobilization site within the next few months.

Anne Cash of the Rock Hill Family Readiness Group tells the Rock Hill Herald a planning meeting for an official sendoff is set for March 31st at the Rock Hill Armory adjacent to the York County Airport.