February 1968 opened a new chapter of my war experiences in SOUTH VIETNAM.
RIVER SECTION 532 was transfered on board USS HUNTERDON COUNTY [LST-821) For sailors, to be onboard a ship is like being at ho the me. Honestly, this is how I feel on board each ship that I have sailed. My world evolves in the Pacific and other oceans as well as seas in the Western hemisphere including the Antarctic. However, on board the HUNTERDON COUNTY, it's neither an ocean nor sea that I'm dealing with. Instead, it is one of the "CUU LONG", or "NINE DRAGONS".
This is the vietnamese name for the nine branches of the Mekong river that flows out to the South China Sea. And the "DRAGON" that I am refering to is the "HAM LUONG RIVER". Once a safe commercial waterway, HAM LUONG RIVER is now a "DEATH ALLEY" with the VIETCONG and NORTH VIETNAMESE REGULARS infiltrating the local villages located on both river banks. Hence, snipers and ambush squads became our daily concerns and worst nightmares.
The major city, BEN TRE, once prosperous is now partly devastated by war. The resident,s are now either friendly, enemy or enemy symphatizers. At it,s entrance, or "BEN TRE CANAL", stood a '"RED BRICK HOUSE" that became a landmark for every PBR crew that patrolled the HAM LUONG. I can honestly say that in one of our patrols whether day or night, each of us was fired at by VIETCONG SNIPERS-positioned somewhere inside that RED BRICK HOUSE. To express our spite, each patrol tacitly made firing runs that almost leveled that BRICK HOUSE to the ground. Needless to say, this stopped the "SNIPER"S ACTIVITY" in that area.
Nonetheless, we all know that this is not the end of it. There's still the whole stretch of the HAM LUONG RIVER to worry about. The entire area of the HAM LUONG RIVER is designated as a "FREE FIRE ZONE". This means that the entire area was considered as a "SPHERE OF INFLUENCE" of the enemy. In lieu of this, all boats on patrol must constantly move. This is same with the HUNTERDON COUNTY. The HAM LUONG is not as wide as the CUA DAM RIVER where staying in the middle is considered safe. On the other hand, in the HAM LUONG RIVER any spot is within the sniper,s range. Furthermore, being only a month since the start of the "TET OFFENSIVE", the NORTH VIETNAM'S REGULARS[NVR] are still well entrenched in the area. To have the combination of the NVR and Vietcong only meant "DOUBLE TROUBLE" for us. With this in mind, each of us became more observative and speculative in regard to any obvious or peculiar scenes and activities of the river traffics. This is same with the movements on both river banks.
All of us knew, that any mis-judgement on our part could lure and lead us into an ambush, which the enemies are well capable of. Most of us had been through this situation before and needless to say, none of us like to go through it again. Each patrol could be our last, and honestly speaking, I don't want to push my luck. I believe that I can contribute more to the WAR EFFORT by staying alive rather than being a statistic of WAR.
Being new in the area, getting familiar with the topography of the area is imperative for all of us. This contributes highly to our safety. Each estuary canal and nooks at the riverbanks are potential sites for an ambush. Hence, every bit of information is a blessing for all of us. But, who will be the source of these informations? Surely not from the enemy. It will be from no one else but us. Thereafter, at the end of each patrol, We have made a point to share each experiences of the day including river traffics and human traffics at the riverbanks. Repetitive as it may seem, nonetheless, this gave us the "RIVERSMARTS" that helped us elude numerous ambush attempts by the enemy.
Although the river traffic was not as congested as the "CUA DAI" and "CUA TIEU", the firefights, however, were plenty. '"PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE" were conducted constantly, particularly by the night patrols. As I've said before, this type of warfare is an invitation for a firefight.
Operations with the "NAVY SEALS" were also conducted often. In retrospect, one of the biggest "ARMS & AMMUNITION CACHE" made by units of RIVER SECTION 532 and the US NAVY SEALS was in one of these operations. Notwithstanding all the dangers that we"ve faced each day, I can honestly say that our morale stays on it's highest. This can only be attributed to the leadership of our NAVAL OFFICERS in the persons of LT. GEORGE STEFENCAVAGE, LT. CHIARUTTINI, LT. KEN NELSON, LT. JAN GILBERTSON, and LT. PARKER. These NAVAL OFFICERS goes out on patrols; get into firefights and eat "C-RATS" with us. They are one of us and this takes "GUTS'. This emphatic behaviour kept our "FIGHTING SPIRIT" burning at all times. Their"SOLIDNESS"was the virtue that made RIVER SECTION 532 a "FORCE" to be reckon with, particularly to the enemies. This notoriety have spread and reached the NORTHERNMOST tributaries of the MEKONG RIVER including the VAN CUU DONG RIVER (PURPLE HEART ALLEY), QUI NHON BAY and TRACU.
Next: "Destination...UNKNOWN"...
RIVER SECTION 532 was transfered on board USS HUNTERDON COUNTY [LST-821) For sailors, to be onboard a ship is like being at ho the me. Honestly, this is how I feel on board each ship that I have sailed. My world evolves in the Pacific and other oceans as well as seas in the Western hemisphere including the Antarctic. However, on board the HUNTERDON COUNTY, it's neither an ocean nor sea that I'm dealing with. Instead, it is one of the "CUU LONG", or "NINE DRAGONS".
This is the vietnamese name for the nine branches of the Mekong river that flows out to the South China Sea. And the "DRAGON" that I am refering to is the "HAM LUONG RIVER". Once a safe commercial waterway, HAM LUONG RIVER is now a "DEATH ALLEY" with the VIETCONG and NORTH VIETNAMESE REGULARS infiltrating the local villages located on both river banks. Hence, snipers and ambush squads became our daily concerns and worst nightmares.
The major city, BEN TRE, once prosperous is now partly devastated by war. The resident,s are now either friendly, enemy or enemy symphatizers. At it,s entrance, or "BEN TRE CANAL", stood a '"RED BRICK HOUSE" that became a landmark for every PBR crew that patrolled the HAM LUONG. I can honestly say that in one of our patrols whether day or night, each of us was fired at by VIETCONG SNIPERS-positioned somewhere inside that RED BRICK HOUSE. To express our spite, each patrol tacitly made firing runs that almost leveled that BRICK HOUSE to the ground. Needless to say, this stopped the "SNIPER"S ACTIVITY" in that area.
Nonetheless, we all know that this is not the end of it. There's still the whole stretch of the HAM LUONG RIVER to worry about. The entire area of the HAM LUONG RIVER is designated as a "FREE FIRE ZONE". This means that the entire area was considered as a "SPHERE OF INFLUENCE" of the enemy. In lieu of this, all boats on patrol must constantly move. This is same with the HUNTERDON COUNTY. The HAM LUONG is not as wide as the CUA DAM RIVER where staying in the middle is considered safe. On the other hand, in the HAM LUONG RIVER any spot is within the sniper,s range. Furthermore, being only a month since the start of the "TET OFFENSIVE", the NORTH VIETNAM'S REGULARS[NVR] are still well entrenched in the area. To have the combination of the NVR and Vietcong only meant "DOUBLE TROUBLE" for us. With this in mind, each of us became more observative and speculative in regard to any obvious or peculiar scenes and activities of the river traffics. This is same with the movements on both river banks.
All of us knew, that any mis-judgement on our part could lure and lead us into an ambush, which the enemies are well capable of. Most of us had been through this situation before and needless to say, none of us like to go through it again. Each patrol could be our last, and honestly speaking, I don't want to push my luck. I believe that I can contribute more to the WAR EFFORT by staying alive rather than being a statistic of WAR.
Being new in the area, getting familiar with the topography of the area is imperative for all of us. This contributes highly to our safety. Each estuary canal and nooks at the riverbanks are potential sites for an ambush. Hence, every bit of information is a blessing for all of us. But, who will be the source of these informations? Surely not from the enemy. It will be from no one else but us. Thereafter, at the end of each patrol, We have made a point to share each experiences of the day including river traffics and human traffics at the riverbanks. Repetitive as it may seem, nonetheless, this gave us the "RIVERSMARTS" that helped us elude numerous ambush attempts by the enemy.
Although the river traffic was not as congested as the "CUA DAI" and "CUA TIEU", the firefights, however, were plenty. '"PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE" were conducted constantly, particularly by the night patrols. As I've said before, this type of warfare is an invitation for a firefight.
Operations with the "NAVY SEALS" were also conducted often. In retrospect, one of the biggest "ARMS & AMMUNITION CACHE" made by units of RIVER SECTION 532 and the US NAVY SEALS was in one of these operations. Notwithstanding all the dangers that we"ve faced each day, I can honestly say that our morale stays on it's highest. This can only be attributed to the leadership of our NAVAL OFFICERS in the persons of LT. GEORGE STEFENCAVAGE, LT. CHIARUTTINI, LT. KEN NELSON, LT. JAN GILBERTSON, and LT. PARKER. These NAVAL OFFICERS goes out on patrols; get into firefights and eat "C-RATS" with us. They are one of us and this takes "GUTS'. This emphatic behaviour kept our "FIGHTING SPIRIT" burning at all times. Their"SOLIDNESS"was the virtue that made RIVER SECTION 532 a "FORCE" to be reckon with, particularly to the enemies. This notoriety have spread and reached the NORTHERNMOST tributaries of the MEKONG RIVER including the VAN CUU DONG RIVER (PURPLE HEART ALLEY), QUI NHON BAY and TRACU.
Next: "Destination...UNKNOWN"...
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