I joined the The A small craft repair facility and an Auxiliary Floating Drydock (AFDL) helped keep NSA vessels in working order. . there. I suppose that I needed that time alone to recover from the amputation! It was what those I was one of the unlucky ones who ended up shoveling a lot of shit! I yelled "incoming" and took off running to the nearest watch post which was 150 yards away. whole story here. YFU-54 (Car 54 where are you). Vietnam Vet? I made a series of videos about the exhibit before it was closed. Whenever there were 122 rocket attacks there would be casualties and being as how I was a first responder and did the damage clean up and repair and being as how medivaced Marines did not need their uniforms any more I would just help myself to what ever would fit me. Clayton Beerworth and I were working on major repairs there by 0600 and the Mess hall was in operation more or less by that evening although it took a couple more days to get it up to 100% . The next day a Chinook helicopter dropped a cable down to the burned out UH-1 and hauled it away. I had my sailboat and some Do the job, get it done right and then sign off the work order and move on to the next one. But I don't consider myself as one. Then when I went back to the shop that night I would have Bettencourt cut me a bunch of rebar stakes 2 ft long. bgmarshall@aol.com. . this pic sure isn't it, at least That's danger close to the shop! say I rarely ventured onto the left It was losing altitude and we were wondering if they would make it. couldn't resist testing it's limits! If you are able to extract the Right. and I was just finishing up the door. H e had white hair and a white beard and very much looked like Santa Clause. Finally, the harsh northeast monsoon made cargo operations at Danang and throughout I Corps hazardous and difficult during the winter months.[1]. Then of course there was the dreaded incoming 122mm and 140mm incoming rocket. The solution that I found was just to build big rectangle frames (20 feet by 40 feet) sitting on top the ground . So what did I do for work uniforms ? called to general quarters was in Gave me the creeps then and still does now when I think about it! Sure. The two crew members jumped out just under the flames .They carried their M-60 machine guns. The sign on the mess hall door It was at maximum power and flying very fast. maintenance, and generally taking I served there and just would like to hear from some of the guys that was there. Click Below to watch some clips from "Tien Sha & Da Nang 1969" -- Please note that because of the transfer process this You Tube video is of a lesser quality than the actual DVD. Then to With chow finished I had the rest of Use tab to navigate through the menu items. afford at the time and they taught me a lot about handling vehicles. The pilots jumped out . . Color home movie footage filmed by a serviceman at Camp Tien Sha and Da Nang during 1969, including footage of Freedom Hill, Dogpatch, the April 27th Da Nang ammo dump explosion & aftermath, and more. The Marines on the perimeter were yelling at them to run parallel to the wire. I held the door open for them. It wasn't a normally I was new in country and still in John Wayne mode. "personal" shower head and keeping Because of Da Nang's strategic location on rail, air, and highway routes, development of its . I was then sent to Camp Carter while we were opening up an old ROK base that was being used by Philco Ford to teach Vietnamese Sailors how to maintain diesel motors that were used in the river boats. ACTOV addition Admiral Army assets assistance attack August base Beach beds began boats Bridge buildings Camp Tien Sha cargo Center changes Class closed combat Commander Communications. All though I grew up on a farm butchering animals to put in our freezer every year this was something different for me. Detachment Dong Ha - 1967 - 1970. The next day he would become my first hooch mate although I had to rush to get a couple partitions up so he would have his own space. Later after they landed it became obvious that they were throwing out the ammo boxes so they wouldn't explode when they landed. places that you or others would be referring to. We took 2 122mm rockets about where the crates are. So every week there would be a different doctor. identified as "enlisted head" in The poor farmer screamed like you could never imagine until he finally passed out. 4. I could feel the rasping of that bone saw through the stick in the farmers mouth! Well I had 11 months to go and it was going to be a very long 11 months ! Naval Support Facility DaNang (1970-1972), and the Detachments. It was kind of a taste of what we would get when the monsoons came in September. I'm sorry my last letter to you was so abruptly ended, but I figured I'd best get it sent, otherwise you'd still be waiting. 1968 SPECIAL REPORT: "CAMP TIEN SHA RACIAL TROUBLE" Hezakya Newz & Films 165K subscribers Subscribe 300 9.9K views 1 year ago For African Americans soldiers serving in the armed forces during the. Driving around on the perimeter of the base checking for burned out security lights could also be very hazardous . In another incident, a black guard was shot to death when a black sailor went on a wild shooting spree at Camp Tien Sha near Danang. Naval Support Activity (NSA) Danang was officially established on 15 October 1965. On Friday May 17 I was sent out on another job. C Chi tunnels. This is surely just something I've He told me step by step every detail. (a hooch is a 16 by 32 ft wood framed plywood building with 5 foot high walls and a tin roof.) During the first half of his in-country tour, Norton made the best of a boring and life- consuming job as a Tien Sha Peninsula Security Division guard. It took until 2000 hours to finish that first slab. Well I never did hear from Barbee. My AR 15 slept on my left side right next to my body so I could always feel where it was. She smelled horrible! I was aguard for Tien Sha Peninsula Security division. He always seemed happy and smiling and the whole time he was around the clinic I never heard him speak a single work. With over 81,000 members, VVA provides a community of fellowship with people who share common experiences, needs and hopes for the future. On the back of the truck was his dog Judy and inside on the dashboard was an M-16 rifle. the late 60's and early 70's. and the LT moved to the Da. You'll see the plumes of smoke, fireballs and falling debris from the explosion of the DaNang ammo dump on April 27, 1969 -- and close ups of some of the damage to buildings and barracks. I wondered how I would feel if someone burned down my home ,killed my dad and took my little brother away to a hospital. The next weekend I asked about the farmer ? 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 ! It was really to late to save the helicopter but at least nobody was killed or hurt! barrels over the bow. Tour: August 2, 1969 through July 17, 1970. map to the right is intended to be used as a The new pier facility allowed deep-draft ocean-going vessels to unload cargo directly onto trucks instead of offloading into Lighters while anchored in the harbor. There was outgoing mortar rounds and incoming. I have nothing but respect for those that were. Book description. 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. T is a history of NSA in Vietnam, which by 1969 was the Navy's largest overseas command with the largest public works department in the world. Her top was not buttoned and she had a gauze bandage about the size of a tea plate on her chest up to her neck. Sandoval. June 29, 2022; creative careers quiz; ken thompson net worth unix Sunday late afternoons we were able to get over to the Red Beach causeway and get in some water sessions. It was no problem during the day because either the XO or Chief were there or the secretary,interpreter (miss Nguyen). I knew I wasn't in Kansas. To know all the different sounds was to be able to read what was happening at night and how safe I was. k. It was a strange way for a job to start. The Seabee construction crews he is referring to was my crew. . I recognize the admin building on the right, everything else is pretty vague. Some times a lot of shit happened . 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. Here is the battalion report for May 1968. Our generators were not even running yet so I heard the rocket coming in. We knew the helicopter was in trouble because of the trail of smoke and how fast it was flying. I did spend plenty of time on Marine firebases around the Da Nang-Phu Bai area and spent time at a camp located at Phu Loc. I wish I would have known about it then! During the day of May 21 or May 22 Bettencourt took our flat bed truck to covered storage in Danang to pick up supplies while he was there a bunch of Navy trucks were lined up to load beds and lockers to furnish some barracks at Camp Tien Sha . - (07-07-02) I have NO remberance of On the left Next thing I realize he has a hold on my sleeve. While my guys were working I was talking to the Gunny in the hut. Yes that's me smiling up from the 122mm rocket crater. Naval Communication Facility. I spent 33 years "Ya, there has been a sniper shooting at the fence crew every morning for the past week. The Navy Doc was probably in his mid 30s and it was obvious to me that he had done this type of work before. shoes" and one of the Vietnamese It had 4 windows so I went to the window for H. I handed the clerk my records pack. 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. heads" but they were always stolen BBC News, Da Nang, Vietnam Da Nang is one of Vietnam's major ports, a city rich in history. There were other things to screw up the nights. A refugee family was living in a lean too in Dog Patch south . Camp Tien Sha Vietnam 1968 from Monkey Mountain nstar48 Media item Jan 30, 2008 camp tien sha monkey mountain united states navy seabees vietnam war year 1968 Comments: 2 Category: Images of Vietnam China Beach from Monkey Mountain 1968 China Beach and Marble Mountain from Monkey Mountain Vietnam 1968 nstar48 Media item Jan 30, 2008 Amphibious fuel lines were laid along the sea floor to storage tanks ashore at Red Beach Base Area, north of the city and the Marines' Marble Mountain Air Facility to the south. The day we put up our sign . There was a young mother with several kid and grandma and grandpa. Fay, although it must have happened. Camp Horn is a former United States Marine Corps and United States Army base located in Danang, Vietnam. configuration it would hold about 10 people. About a mile out the crew started kicking boxes out the doors. A smell I have never smelled again in my life time. I had my parents send me my Scuba diving lesson book and in what little spare time we could find we would hold Scuba study sessions. On May 21,1968 at 2400 hr. "Sorry that's all we have!" training), ands a week at Whidby Island (E&E, and SERE. Vietnam went on and I was done at the Clinic and never heard about it anymore until I went back to Vietnam in 1996 and tried to visit and the guard at the gate chased me away but I did find out that after the war in became a mental hospital for young people. Sleeping in that bunker was not good.It had 2 opening which allowed the mosquitoes to get in and eat the shit out of me. enough for me. The Post office took a close hit and there was damage to 3 ambulances by sick bay and a bunch of trucks at the motor pool. Had tied their hands behind their backs and executed them. Well I answered once about the FNGs. Within a hundred feet of the generators. Everyone had his turf marked out and nobody was willing to give any for me. Administration Armed assigned Assistant August Back base boats Camp Tien Sha CAPT Captain cargo Center CHARLES Chief of Staff combat Commander Control Corps craft Cua Viet DaNang DAVID. The Doc trimmed all the skin and muscle nice and neat adding clamps (hemostats) as he went. ( We called the Army Republic Of Vietnam police white mice because they were small, wore white helmets white web belts, white pistol holsters and white spats.) Some times she would get so drunk that she couldn't walk anymore, was really funny watch her four legs going in different directions! Technicaly they were out side the perimeter so were not recorded, I guess. I would have to wait a few more days for that to start. click here or click "back" until you That's how we got our beds, enough for everyone. So my hooch would now have 5 of us. It was creepy doing that trip to the causeway. identified as "enlisted head." When that needle went in that poor farmer screamed and jerked up headed for the ceiling! Some time during the night the VC entered the Skivvy house, capturing them without a fight. things. There were Seabees, Korean Philco Ford, Vietnamese all working like mad . When I found out about that I went with Bet to talk to that officer. The only answer I could give them that they would except was. Off we went to the supply yard at one of the SeaBee battalions, while we were there we stopped for a quick lunch at the Navy mess hall. It took six and one half days to finish that hooch (later with a full crew it would usually take us four days to build a hooch). The U.S. Navy established the MST-1 detachment to train Vietnamese crews and maintain PTFs in February 1964. Rank Among Most Heavily Sprayed Provinces in Vietnam. Coate gave me two sets of shorts and short sleeve shirts. technical and supply stuff. This was a Sunday afternoon BBQ about 1800 hr. Catecka Base Camp. After the farmer passed out and the legs were cut off the nurse was able to stop holding the farmer down and assist the Doc by handing him the clamps and other tools as he needed them. Drive out the back gate and about 2 miles to the Navy Seabee base. She giggled a bit (talk He left me sitting there on the steps saying he would send Beerworth down at 1700 hr to get me settled in. Once I went "over" The Marines would open that up and would also be extending the perimeter and adding watch posts . Besides the concrete hospital was a large concrete and stone ward building which had not even been started in early June. My first assignment was YFU-54, then What amazed me was by brakefast time at 0530 the marines had already set up a field mess trailer out side the mess hall and were serving breakfast. Electrician CN (E-3) Pat Brown, Builder CN (E-3) Craig Taylor, Builder 3Rd Class Calabresi. I believe we also tied him around the waist. Every morning I was stripping floors and then in the afternoon waxing and buffing and cleaning the showers, normal Navy grunt work. Manage all your favorite fandoms in one place! The bundle was given to the mother who would take the bundle out side and set it down in the dirt by the street. Was I scared ? Here is an E mail I got from Karl explaining his arrival to Vietnam and Camp Books (FLC) The last week of May brought us a knew Chief Builder and our old Chief Botswains mate left us. I will expect you to be able to do your job and if you can't then your out of here! Our group that was sent to MST1 landed in airlines circling the DaNang airbase over the Country of South Vietnam. From 1800 hours until 0600 we had to have some one stand watch. We found the family and with the help of other refugees were proceeded to tear down their shelter and build them a house. Most of the time if you were Most of them would be dead by now as most of the men were in their mid forties then . risking my life in a really inadequate vehicle! I do web work now and I want to help you fix your articles so people can read them easier.I'm not asking to get paid I just want to do something for you. On the technical What the hell is that? arrive there again.. Joe Witmeyer shares this 50th We also had a couple of American Philco Ford teachers. We weren't expecting any new men and we don't have the time to train you. I stood there wondering how I was going to drive wood stakes into that hard ground. New year found 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. DaNang aerial photograph It was reported in an Email that National Geographic Magazine somewhere between Jan. 1967 and June 1968 had an aerial photograph of DaNang with enough detail to get the CIA uptight. roof. K-9 Security Unit-1 (Navy Sentry Dog Unit) Det Cua Viet 1st Naval LARC Division. There weren't even any stairs going up there yet. information beyond what we already have. Published October 25, 2017 Updated April 22, 2021 These Vietnam War photos taken by U.S. Army photographers reveal a side of the conflict that few people have ever seen. On May 15 I had finished 6 or 8 escape doors. Those care packages and her letters help keep me going when ever times got really tough! There were no more shots that day but there would be on the next two mornings. He lets fly with 8 or 10 rounds then he is done for the day. Camp Haskins, Da Nang, Vietnam, served as headquarters of the 30th Naval Construction Regiment, who exercised operational control of Seabee units deployed to Vietnam. The harbor defense unit used landing craft, picket boats and 16 feet (4.9m) Boston Whalers to monitor and protect the maritime traffic. In November 1965 500 men moved into the old French Army camp, Camp Tien Sha (Tin Sa) at the foot of Monkey Mountain. 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 where along the line the nurse had done an IV drip. "driving deprived" at the time and any time I had access to a 44 Declassified Vietnam War Photos Taken By U.S. Army Photographers View Gallery History is not a fixed set of facts. Cat Lo Naval Base. It had been built the end of April so was brand new. I tried one other time a few months later but didn't have the appropriate paper work. The usual row of sinks, toilets and The fleet also managed logistic operations at these locations. We time does that. The base appears to remain in use by the PAVN. 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. Different kinds of flairs, the different mortar sounds and small arms fire. The Brief. The causeway was a floating pier that extended about a 100 yards into Da Nang bay and was used to off load ammunition and bombs. I hated that phone, radio, air conditioning and black coffee! 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. Welcome to Viet----fuckn Nam you FNGs ( funking new guys) !!! It He spent the night at the shop bunker by himself , totally confused as to what was going on. to LCU-1498 (same routine). MST1 and thought it would be a good time to go back and see Over time that changed, I didn't want to know any newbies! I think he may have had scrambled brains to go with his stitched up head . I would have to find some time to build a foot locker. The This is the day I started my real job. After he was medivaced one young labor worker(Baby son) would ask me every morning If I had heard how Barbee was and if I got a letter from him. The huge fuel tank was just being build on the left out of the picture. I was driving on the perimeter road with the dry storage ASM wall on my right. I went out and sat on my toolbox and thought about what I had just experienced. While the Seabee's exploits in Vietnam would carry on the tradition set during the Second World War, their work in Southeast Asia actually . at Camp Fay. So I would start the mornings dancing around the job site until the sniper was done and then we would get to work. That was necessary because Dearest Rita, I just finished a quick letter to my folks first one since I've been here. Another source for jungle fatigues was up at Camp Reasoner. We set the radio on squelch so it would make a lot of noise and wake us up. worked that jeep to it's limits and had a highly entertaining time My big problem was how to build those damn concrete forms without using wood stakes. [4]:8. Naval Support Activity DaNang (1965-1970), the U.S. 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. I cried to myself on the way back to the base. In DaNang we had what was called the "duty jeep". Well I had 2 sets that were issued to me when I went threw weapons training at Coronado and Camp Pendleton. The Navy Doc cleared off the big desk and the MPs deposited the farmer onto the desk. I would sit at the desk and drink coffee, write letters or poetry. I have absolutely no recollection of I didn't understand at that time the danger of rocket attacks. As tired as I was I never got much sleep. I was to hear FNG All of the rounds hit in swamp area between the main base and FLC command building . What we finally did was a one man 12 hour watch. The Chief did manage to get bedding (Ha,Ha) I got one bed sheet and one pillow case. reportedf to the USS Permit (SSN-594) at Mare Island, and got out a We stopped work and watched. I was finished with my concrete forms before noon on Wednesday . We all thought that everyone on this earth was doing the highest and best possible all the time for each situation. There were at least 500 RVN Sailors, 6 American Sailors, and two Koreans who worked for Philco Ford. They cut a hole through their new fence and cleared a path threw the tangle foot and mines wide enough for a 4 wheel drive mule. 11. embarrassed but she didn't seem to Camp Tien Sha, Vietnam. Some part of it was always listening to what was going on . It became the headquarters for all U.S. I took all the materials that I thought I would need to build the cement forms for my strong backs. 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! I was hugely Do you have CAMP TIENSHA, DANANG,VIETNAM Reunion information you'd like to share. I suppose we had a good conversation but don't have a clue of what. I didn't He got in line and they loaded his truck with beds, lots of beds. Individuality, not. We had no black out lights on our trucks so we would have been any easy target for anyone who decided that they were going to kill us!