As the sun set on Fort Bragg, dozens of soldiers calmly prepared lines of military vehicles.

On Monday, their convoy would be the first heading south, into areas ravaged by Hurricane Irma.

Soldiers from the 3rd Expeditionary Sustainment Command are to be the first Fort Bragg troops to deploy in support of an Irma relief mission. They are expected to be joined by hundreds of paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division on Monday, traveling first to Fort Stewart, Georgia, to stage their equipment and await orders to head into Florida.

First, Florida’s leaders will have to ask the military for help in picking up the pieces in the wake of Irma, which came ashore Sunday and ripped a path of destruction northward.

In all, nearly 400 soldiers and more than 110 military vehicles are expected to deploy in support of relief operations, officials said. They will eventually be stationed in Orlando, if Florida authorities seek their help.

At the Installation Transportation Deployment Support Area on Fort Bragg, soldiers from the 264th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, part of the 3rd ESC, inspected the vehicles they will take south. They included Humvees, Light Medium Tactical Vehicles, fuel tankers and other large vehicles able to operate in high waters.

Some of the vehicles carried large tanks of potable water. Others were laden with water purification systems, mosquito nets and MREs, or Meals, Ready-to-Eat.

More than 90 soldiers and about 30 vehicles belonging to the 3rd ESC are to deploy Monday. More than 290 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne will deploy with more than 80 vehicles.

The 82nd Airborne soldiers will be known as Task Force All American Lift and will include soldiers from every brigade within the division, led by Col. Jon P. Beale — the commander of the 82nd Airborne Division Sustainment Brigade.

Beale said that when disaster strikes, Fort Bragg soldiers have to be ready to respond. He said soldiers were eager to help the people of Florida and other areas hit by the hurricane.

“This division is always training to be ready,” he said.

Lt. Col. Joe Buccino, a spokesman with the 82nd Airborne Division, said soldiers were notified Saturday and put on “prepare to deploy” orders early Sunday morning.

“The All American Division is once again ready to support the American citizenry in a time of crisis,” he said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone in this country affected by this hurricane.”

“Our paratroopers are standing by ready to support when called forward,” Buccino said.

Beale said the paratroopers’ mission will be to distribute vital supplies to storm victims. They’ll work closely with the 3rd ESC, which is synchronizing the relief mission.

For some of the soldiers, it’ll be a personal mission.

Sgt. Kenneth Brown is a construction vehicle repairer with the 264th CSSB. He volunteered to deploy because he has family in the hurricane’s path.

“I’m from Tampa,” he said. “There’s where I’ve been raised since I was 3, 4 years old.”

Brown said he has been following the storm closely.

“So far everybody’s alright,” he said.

But he said he couldn’t sit back and watch others help his home state.

“To me it’s an amazing feeling,” Brown said. “There’s nothing better than being able to give back.”

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The soldiers will not be armed during the relief mission. If asked to help in Florida, they’ll have the authority to “save lives, alleviate human suffering and protect public safety,” officials said.

“This is not a fun mission,” said Maj. Sarah Rynkowski, the 3rd ESC’s command judge advocate, while briefing the deploying soldiers. “People may lose their lives and their homes.”

Lt. Col. Sean Smith, the commander of the 264th CSSB, said responding quickly to whatever the nation requires is what his unit trains to do.

“They’re going to go where there’s need,” he said. “We’re there to do whatever it takes to provide just a little glimmer of hope.”

Dozens of Fort Bragg soldiers deployed last month to Texas in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, including some from the 3rd ESC.

The 82nd Airborne Division was last asked to support hurricane relief in 2005, when about 5,000 paratroopers deployed to Louisiana after hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

As of Sunday, U.S. Army officials said there were more than 9,900 soldiers and civilians supporting relief efforts in Florida, Georgia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Much of the relief efforts are being led by U.S. Northern Command and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Other military units assisting include the USS Kearsage, USS Wasp and USS Oak Hill, which are deployed along with Marines from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit from Camp Lejeune, offloading supplies in the Virgin Islands.

According to Northern Command, three other ships — the USS Abraham Lincoln, USS Iwo Jima and USS New York — will begin search and rescue operations when weather permits.

In all, the command said 4,500 personnel are postured in the Southeast, and support bases have been set up at Fort Bragg, Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey, Warner Robins Air Force Base in Georgia, Moody Air Force Base in Georgia, Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia and North Air Force Auxiliary Airfield in South Carolina. The sites will help distribute bottled water, tarps, generators and pharmaceutical supplies through the affected region.

Military editor Drew Brooks can be reached at dbrooks@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3567.