We took 2 122mm rockets about where the crates are. The shop doors were always open and a light on in the shop. As such a small group we couldn't do the standard Navy 4 hour watch. Danang East/Main: Served in Da Nang East then Main. "Honcho come", he pulls me around the Quonset hut, his eyes were as big as saucers! Well I don't know how much of an impression that left on me but these guys getting killed in the Skivvy house got my attention ! I held that little girl sitting on my tool box and in a short time she was used to me and clutching onto the front of my shirt. In Feb 1973, evacuated Danang to San Miguel . The wounded man was the Mess Sargent who was the only one at the mess hall at the time. I got my NAUI Scuba diving cerification in July 1966. We also had a couple of American Philco Ford teachers. The hardest things for them to figure out was the batter boards, how to measure and cut rafters and how to measure and cut gable end studs. Had fun there, especially since I had to wear civilian clothes. Familiar Places. Some time that day the Catholic Priest who was in charge of the clinic and also the Da Nang orphanage showed up . cold glasses of chocolate milk, ice cream and an apple to go. Closer and closer, the engine starting to whine! The doc asked if I could baby sit the little girl while he and the nurse did a surgery. I didn't think about the danger but was aware of it. What that means is we stood a four hour night watch every other night. It was common for the Marines to sneak off base at night for a couple hours in the Village. Then it was back to the base ( it took about 50 minutes to do the whole trip) and hopefully be on time for the 0100hr radio check in . Then after thinking about it I realized how wrong I was. In the future I iwas in the 1097th med boat co. dongtam,vietnam 1968 towed 3rd 34th artery barges up down the canels moble riverine force 9th inf divion, caption wild was incharge I am very grateful to Annette for the support she gave me while I was in Vietnam. After the bones were cut the Doc tied off all the bleeders and removed the hemostats . History [ edit ] Following the initial landing of Marines in South Vietnam on 8 March 1965, the 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade (9th MEB) established their headquarters in an old French Army compound on the western edge of Da Nang Air Base . BBC News, Da Nang, Vietnam. As he cut them off he threw them in the corner beside the shelf and I can remember how strange they looked leaning against the wall! I arrived in Da Nang in June 1968. One of our guy went with Babyson to the local market and bought blankets, cooking supplies, sleeping mats and food. [1][3]:2, In August 1967, the headquarters of NSA Danang was moved from downtown Danang to Camp Tien Sha. The guys loaded up my tool box and gave me an M-16 so I would be able to walk back to the base later. There was the real possibility of hitting a mine or being ambushed by the VC (it happened more often then I would like to think about) . Between 1969 and 1971 hundreds, if not thousands, of incidents of racial violence occurred in and around American military bases I can still hear the snip of the scissors as the Doc cut away the flesh. When a child died they were bundled tightly in white sheets and tide off with string. Recent photo of Cheryl and me. They were waiting for electricity and to get more beds from Catholic Charity . Naval Support Activity DaNang (1965-1970 . I joined the Navy Reserve and went to . Mostly I was just kind of mentally numb. He was standing about 10 feet from me and the first round of a rocket attack went through the ventilator on top of our building ,exactly four feet above the LTs head and exploded in the ware house bay next to our shop. As soon as they caught on they would take on that task and I would move on to the next. that's one of our generators upper left. I went back to my cubicle crawled into bed, ending my This book is the capstone volume of the entire series in that 1968, as the title indicates, was the defining year of the war. The Chief did manage to get bedding (Ha,Ha) I got one bed sheet and one pillow case. In November 1965 500 men moved into the old French Army camp, Camp Tien Sha at the foot of Monkey Mountain. I am sure this little girl will be my last thought when I punch out from this world. Here is the letter I wrote my parents on May 15, 1968. Donald F. Hovanec was born on December 10, 1949. It was a Saturday, perhaps we were finishing up the cook shed. side was a barge with a sign. June 29, 2022; creative careers quiz; ken thompson net worth unix As tired as I was I never got much sleep. VVA's goals . Iowa. Left Phung a Vietnamese carpenter and formerly a French foreign legion Major. Detachment Nha Trang - 1965 - 1971. Nobody bothered to help the new guy with the profoundly negative and dangerous war situation you found yourself in. The Doc narrated as he worked, what he was doing, what he was going to do, when I should be prepared for the farmer to go ballistic! This is the Hoa Kahn clinic at the time I started working there. I pretty much walked the whole base then back to the EM club for a cold beer Barbee was very well liked by the labor crew. The village it refers to was just north of Camp Books. I would share it with my team mates but a lot of it I gave to the Vietnamese children at the Clinic or whenever I worked off base. Well whenever I was working in that area I would sneak in the tent and find some dirty uniforms,still in good shape and steal them, put them in my crew tool box and take them back to my hooch and hand wash them ! Da Nang is known as the tourist capital of South-Central Vietnam, with a west coast location that makes for beautiful sunsets against an impressive backdrop of lush mountains. Issues related to race and race relations helped to define the African American experience in the United States, and these same issues defined the experiences of black soldiers in Vietnam.Race relations in combat were typified by cooperation, shared sacrifice, and a sense of brotherhood. This is the first Poem that I wrote in Vietnam and is about the two marines killed in the skivvy house. Cest pourquoi tous les fichiers proposs sur iStock, quil sagisse dune, Des publicits sur les rseaux sociaux aux panneaux daffichage, en passant par les prsentations PowerPoint et longs mtrages, vous aurez la libert de modifier, redimensionner et personnaliser tous les fichiers sur iStock, y compris toutes les images et vidos, dessins Humoristiques et Bandes dessines, Notices lgales et protection de la vie prive. About a mile out the crew started kicking boxes out the doors. Re: Vietnam Nam vet wants to see war sites. You will use the chain of command ,don't come to me. APL-30 and dock at Da Nang harbor. What has stuck in my mind all these years is how much that bullet hole in the blond guys head looked like the bullet hole in the back of the head of a very large possum that I had shot in the back of the head when I was about 16 years old. The nurse was carrying a little girl about 4 years old. My barracks was an old French barracks at Camp Tien Sha near Da Nang. 2023 iStockphoto LP. The little girl was fusing and didn't want to leave the nurse so it took a little effort to hand her off to me . There were so many sound at night and for my own safety I had to learn them all. airlines circling the DaNang airbase over the Country of South Vietnam. What was done was done! . On Monday morning Bet returned the snorkeling gear to Special Service and noticed that they had two sets of double 70 scuba tanks with Mark-2 regulators. James L Chambers (cause of death,misadventure). Tlchargez ds aujourd'hui la photo Camp Tien Sha. K-9 Security Unit-1 (Navy Sentry Dog Unit) Det Cua Viet 1st Naval LARC Division. The poor farmer had stepped on a mine. Necessarily, more is lost to time than is remembered. The camp was quickly expanded to include 25 new barracks able to accommodate an additional 1700 men, together with a . Le logo iStock est une marque dpose de iStockphoto LP. Ya, we continued our work and started building my hooch. Da Nang is one of Vietnam's major ports, a city rich in history. I wish I would have known about it then! There were two supply tents up there and when the Field Marines (grunts) would come in from the bush they would strip off all their dirty clothes and throw them in piles in one tent then go into the other tent and pick up clean uniforms. ---- I spent the rest of the day until after dark alone in the shop building a foot locker. The feet just kind of hanging by muscle and skin. $10 of that came from me. Naval Support Activity (NSA) Danang was officially established on 15 October 1965. He expired nine days later. Craig Taylor was pulled from the job to go work another project.He had also gotten cement poisoning in a cut on his foot so would not be able to help on any more concrete work. Detachment Hue - 1965 - 1970. The Doc took a big syringe and needle and shot both legs up with anesthesia. (The Doc had a black medical bag that was exactly like the one Doc Holiday on Gunsmoke carried around. All in the name of saving them from Communism. 11/03/70 - John D. Shewmake Sr., SFC, Adona, AR. African Americans perceived racial issuesrace relations, prejudice, and discriminationin Vietnam through a lens heavily influenced by their earlier experiences in the United States. So after the 2400 check in I would jump in the truck with M-16 and ammo. Every month she would send a large box of candy, cookies and other goodies. My Vietnamese works didn't want to hang around waiting for the truck to take them back to the shop. One of them used to take me to the MACV Club located by the USS Repose. On Friday May 17 I was sent out on another job. When he was all loaded he told them one of the other drivers had the paper work and while they were trying to hunt down the papers he just drove away. The plane started to drop, going in steep and fast. The Marine on the left was blond and looked like a California surfer.He to had been shot in the back of the head. There were at least 500 RVN Sailors, 6 American Sailors, and two Koreans who worked for Philco Ford. She is always with me ! Don't try to cross in to the base as there were mines. Our shop the day we put up our sign and officially became Area Work Center #5. I actually took the class in 1965 but at that time you had to be 18 years old to get a Scuba Certification. Anyone who tried to open that door without giving our pass word would have been shot. Spent many watches all over the city of Da Nang. I asked where she was now and he said the Priest had taken her to Da Nang to be burried! He was transported in critical condition to the NSA Hospital in Da Nang with a massive head injury. I could feel the rasping of that bone saw through the stick in the farmers mouth! Everyone had his turf marked out and nobody was willing to give any for me. [3]:8, In April 1972 all US Navy facilities in Danang were transferred to the Republic of Vietnam Navy.[4]. I had to make a quick exit when the patients got excited when I walked towards the main ward! At first it was because every thing was so knew and exciting. Guard shacks along the pipe line to the ESSO fuel plant, Oil Tanker off loading at the ESSO fuel plant. Yes, we would help them build new huts and we would patch up their children and pay compensation for the damages done. Late in the day we had built them a nice hootch and had them moved in. The cot had a broken leg so I had to prop it up with a sand bag and it was missing one end piece so it just wanted to fold up on me when I laid on it. So what did I do for work uniforms ? Another interesting point is the H&S Co. By 1969 I was and RM3 in the White Elephant (an old French Fort in downtown Da Nang) where the commanding Admiral was located. Historian, US Navy Seabee Museum. by the time they got to us AWC# 5 we would be awake (hopefully) and report in. the evening to wonder about and check out what Camp Tien Sha had to offer. Another source for jungle fatigues was up at Camp Reasoner. Keep exploring. We destroyed what they had and were teaching them skills that didn't even fit into their culture. 1968 - Harold Goldman's Cobra Gunship Hue 1970, submitted by Roger Carver Hue 1970, submitted by Roger Carver . Well sure I heard about it and even saw them down at 1st MPs. Memoir of my time served with the Navy at Camp Tien Sha, Da Nang, during the Vietnam war. Uss garrett county ( lst-786 ) uss garrett county ( lst-786 ) uss garrett (. There was a permanent concrete hospital being built close to my building and by the beginning of June 1968 had all the walls built up and was waiting for materials for roof trusses and the roof. In reality, it is a collection of ideas, images, and information that enough people have chosen to preserve and disseminate. We took a left hand turn at the intersection and headed out the Tien Sha peninsula towards Monkey Mountain. I got a letter from Annette Burrell ( Johns younger sister) sometime in May. On May 22 at 0200 hr. All of the rounds hit in swamp area between the main base and FLC command building . When I look back it sure seems stupid but at the time what else could I do? The Marines slept 12 to 14 men in a hootch. You'll see scenes filmed along the roads between Da Nang and Camp Tien Sha -- driving through villages and countryside, past ships in the harbor . Great link for in-country Vietnam vets, or those curious about the Vietnam War. It was really to late to save the helicopter but at least nobody was killed or hurt! The nurse laid across the farmers upper thighs to hold him in place. To know all the different sounds was to be able to read what was happening at night and how safe I was. Boy life was improving a lot. Save. The two crew members jumped out just under the flames .They carried their M-60 machine guns. I lay there waiting for the out posts to return fire, nothing happened! He got the point and let me through the gate, no more questions asked. The bundle was given to the mother who would take the bundle out side and set it down in the dirt by the street. Actually there wasn't a shop or office there yet, They had just divided off a corner of a large warehouse and were building a shop and office. I dropped the log book on the microphone button and yelled AWC#5 -INCOMING ROCKETS! Les nouveaux clients peuvent tlcharger cette image en profitant de notre offre dessai gratuit sans engagement. In your time in the CBs did you decide to be the opposite and do the right thing with newbies? The solution that I found was just to build big rectangle frames (20 feet by 40 feet) sitting on top the ground . The ESSO fuel plant from the north east side where we were snorkeling. With chow finished I had the rest of It was very clear that they did not want a FNG getting in their way. Back at the hootch the Seabees got in a major debate about where to put me. I was probably in as much in shock as the farmer. I was going to have to hit the ground running if I intended to stay with this team. It was losing altitude and we were wondering if they would make it. She was especially friendly with our hooch mama-son. and to listen to music. Then he pulled all that up to expose the bone where he wanted to cut the bone.The nurse held all the skin and muscle up while the Doc cut off the bones. Port side of APL-30 (Auxiliary Personnel Lighter) or barracks craft. Well I answered once about the FNGs. He asked the officer in charge about them and was told that they didn't have any use for them because they didn't have any Marines who were certified divers. If there was any heavy weather and to many buffer pads were jumping out I would have to go back to the hooch and roust out a work crew. Some times a lot of shit happened . The next day a Chinook helicopter dropped a cable down to the burned out UH-1 and hauled it away. Yes, everyone called him soccer ball head ! He praised me for staying calm and I had done good then he said I should go outside and sit down as I was looking a little green around the gills! List of aircraft of the Malaysian Armed Forces, http://www.worldcat.org/title/southeast-asia-building-the-bases-the-history-of-construction-in-southeast-asia/oclc/952642951&referer=brief_results, https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/b/by-sea-air-land-marolda/chapter-4-winding-down-the-war-1968-1973.html, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, United States military bases of the Vietnam War. When we got there the doc wanted to show us around. I slowly walked around the trailer checking them out. Camp Tien Sha Vietnam 1968 from Monkey Mountain. Vietnam Memorial Monument Mobile Memorial Museum . went by (so slowly! When I asked the Priest what happened to the kid he said he didn't know, the kid was at the orphanage when he took over. ALL work centers report in : AWC # 1 reports everything is quite ! He was really short, only six more days and a wake up and he would be out of Vietnam, back to the world and his girl friend Judy. They made runs north to Cua Viet at the mouth of the river (80 miles north of DaNang and 6 miles south of the Demilitarized Zone) and then upriver eight miles to Dong Ha to haul cannon ammunition to the marines. Next thing I realize he has a hold on my sleeve. So there I would be for over a week trying to keep the mosquitoes off of me by covering with the sheet and putting my head in the pillow case. We took good care of Judy and she ate very well, We would get stake and chicken from the mess hall and She also loved to drink beer. painting rocks. Camp Haskins, Da Nang, Vietnam, served as headquarters of the 30th Naval Construction Regiment, who exercised operational control of Seabee units deployed to Vietnam. I was one of the unlucky ones who ended up shoveling a lot of shit! Well damn right I was scared. I held the door open for them. Because I was just getting situated it was just mass confusion for me . They were simply ghettos with poor sanitation , communal water supply, no roads or electricity. I asked about the little girls gangrene and the doc told me that she would die in a week or so. She smelled horrible! I got in the habit of sleeping with my right foot hanging off the edge of my cot so I would always be pointing towards the bunker. He spent the night at the shop bunker by himself , totally confused as to what was going on. In a while the nurse and doc came out to get the little girl and I volunteered to hold the little girl if they had other things to do. Now I know where Barbee is but where is Babyson? Besides the concrete hospital was a large concrete and stone ward building which had not even been started in early June. paths and painted white and there were white picket fences around almost every There were no more shots that day but there would be on the next two mornings. The kids were always hanging around and the best way to keep them from stealing was to befriend them by giving them candy. We weren't expecting any new men and we don't have the time to train you. One rocket struck this barracks, but the man in this room survived by . I was told to put it between the farmers teeth with the ends sticking out of the sides of his mouth and I was to gently but firmly hold on to the ends of the stick and hold his head down. So every week there would be a different doctor. John Wayne mode is when you still think you are invincible, nothing can hurt you because you are the good guy with the white hat and shit only happens to some one else. My body was always waiting to react. At that time the base fir truck showed up. Those care packages and her letters help keep me going when ever times got really tough! 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camp tien sha danang, vietnam 1968