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Thursday, June 18-June 24, 2026
Investigation of deadly crash at Edwards Air Force Base continues
VOL. 17, 15,
LA County supervisors approve plan for homelessness prevention services
By Joe Taglieri
A
n investigation was continuing Wednesday to determine the cause of a B-52 bomber crash at Edwards Air Force Base that caused the deaths of eight people at the military installation near Kern, San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties. The B-52 Stratofortress was flying a routine test mission when it crashed shortly after takeoff Monday around 11:20 a.m. Video from the crash site showed a large amount of smoke emanating from the burning military aircraft, which appeared to be completely destroyed. Col. James Hayes, deputy commander of the 412th Test Wing at Edwards Air Force Base, said during a news media briefing Monday afternoon that the aircraft was doing a local test sortie to support a radar modernization program when it crashed immediately after becoming airborne. "Our team of first responders snapped into action, and immediately cordoned off the area and took the appropriate action to start putting out the flames," Hayes told reporters. Edwards Air Force Base officials set up centers for emergency operations and wing operations to coordinate and monitor the response and recovery crews, Hayes said. "After reviewing the footage of the crash, it was deemed that this was an unrecoverable crash and unsurvivable," Hayes said. "At that point, we went into the notification process." Chief Master Sgt. Joshua T. Skarloken said officials
By City News Service
joet@civicnewsgroup.com
T
Jeromy Smith, 32, was among those who died in the B-52 crash Monday at Edwards Air Force Base. | Photo courtesy of Lindsey Smith/GoFundMe
were in the process of notifying the crash victims' families. Military personnel, government civilians and government contractors were among the people on the aircraft. One of the people who died in the crash was identified Tuesday as Jeromy Smith, 32, a civilian flight test engineer. He was a husband and father of two young children. According to a GoFundMe page created to support Smith's wife Lauren, one of the couple's two boys is just 4 months old, and their other son is 2 and a half years old. "Our entire family is devastated by this great loss. My brother-in-law was an incredible husband and an amazing father to their boys," Lindsey Smith wrote on the GoFundMe page, which as of Wednesday morning had raised over $46,000 of a $50,000 goal.
The couple resided in Bakersfield. A separate GoFundMe page identified another of the victims as Lt. Col. Miles Middleton, 42, a test pilot. He was also married with two children. "As a family friend, I've witnessed firsthand the strength and resilience Pam has shown, but the road ahead is filled with uncertainty and challenges," Melissa Lynch wrote on the page. "With Miles gone, Pam is now responsible for supporting her family on her own." As of Wednesday morning people contributed more than $116,500 of the fundraiser's $140,000 goal. The B-52 Stratofortress has been a key regular component of the Air Force's fleet of bombers since starting service in 1955. The longSee Crash Page 09
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range aircraft can carrying as much as 70,000 pounds of weapons and generally has a crew of five. The last crash at the base occurred in 1992, when two crew members were died. According to the U.S. Air Force, the 412th Test Wing does all flight and ground testing of aircraft, weapons systems, software and components along with modeling and simulation work. The unit has a maintenance group of over 2,000 people and an operations group of 3,000. The test wing maintains and flies an average of 90 aircraft with upwards of 30 aircraft designs and performs over 7,400 missions including more than 1,900 test missions each year, officials said. "Risk is an accepted component of flight testing, but because of Edwards'
he Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved a proposal aimed at streamlining homelessness prevention services, including assistance for residents displaced by the Eaton and Palisades fires. A motion by Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Lindsey Horvath calls for the creation of a countywide homelessness prevention resource page on the county website, and a coordinated referral system designed to connect residents with housing assistance before they lose their homes. The motion was approved Tuesday as survey data from the nonprofit Department of Angels found that twothirds of fire survivors remain displaced and nearly half have exhausted, or soon will exhaust, insurance-funded temporary housing benefits. The survey found that 40% of survivors said they could afford no more than six months of housing on their own. "Fire survivors are doing everything right, including paying their mortgage, finding temporary housing, and waiting for support to catch up to their needs," Barger said in a statement. "We can't let families lose their housing on top of everything else they've already lost. This motion means the County will be proactive. Instead of survivors and seniors on fixed incomes having to chase down a dozen different agencies, we're
building one clear path to help." The motion directs county agencies to develop a publicly accessible website identifying available homelessness prevention services, including rental assistance, mortgage relief, legal aid, utility assistance and housing navigation programs. County officials said the resource webpage is expected to be launched within 45 days and will identify available county, regional and partner services. "Recovery isn't onesize-fits-all," Horvath said. "We have to make it easier to access support, connect people to the right resources sooner, and coordinate across agencies so temporary setbacks don't become permanent losses." The motion also calls for outreach to fire-affected communities in Altadena, Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Topanga and Sunset Mesa to ensure residents are aware of available assistance programs. The board directed county departments to develop an outreach plan by July 21 to connect fire-impacted community organizations with available prevention resources. In addition, county departments were directed to develop recommendations for a coordinated homelessness prevention referral system intended to help residents access services before a housing crisis escalates. The referral system will include a triage tool designed to
See Homelessness prevention Page 27