It was the UH-1 trailing smoke. Gave me the creeps then and still does now when I think about it! Welcome! So what did I do for work uniforms ? Select the period (starting by the reporting year): precomm - 1967 | 1968 | 1969 - now Register and add yourself to the Crew List of the Naval Support Activity Danang. 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. While my guys were working I was talking to the Gunny in the hut. Alan on Haircuts These places were essential for the completion of the overall mission and are important for understanding the assignments and accomplishments of personnel who served with the U.S. To know all the different sounds was to be able to read what was happening at night and how safe I was. I made a series of videos about the exhibit before it was closed. If your lost and want It was kind of like the work orders I got. Don't go to Dog Patch at night and stay way from the prostitutes. 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! I didn't realize at the time that the intended target was me and the generators. The map I sent you is how I remember that He had a little Vietnamese kid with him about 8 years old. When I started working on this clinic project I was full of good feelings as to how we were helping these poor Vietnamese people. 11. ] [ Base Drawing Legend ]. The iStock design is a trademark of iStockphoto LP. Here are the Activity reports for May 1968 for the Marines in my AO (area of operation) . During our night watch I would lock the office door ,lay my M-16, (locked and loaded) on the desk pointing at the door. Then to Despite the repeated assurances uttered by our senior non-commissioned petty officers that Camp Tiensha's location on the peninsula that juts out from the City of Danang, and with the location of the Danang airbase on the opposite side of the city itself, generally put our base beyond the purported 7 mile range of the Russian-made 122 millimeter Katyusha rockets . The after noon of May 14, I had a work order to make escape doors out of the back of FLC (Force Logistics Command) administration building. After a couple rocket and mortar attacks my brain never went completely to sleep. My barracks was an old French barracks at Camp Tien Sha near Da Nang. to develop this map. The day we put up our sign . really an enclosure. Some of the women were in their early twenties, so there is still hope. Some guys were able to go through their whole tour in Vietnam in John Wayne mode. NMCB THREE Main Body Flights consisting of three passenger . The shop door are between the 2 telephone poles. with Calif. This was a real live human! So after the 2400 check in I would jump in the truck with M-16 and ammo. Stephen was a veteran of the United States Navy, serving state side and in Vietnam at Camp Tien Sha, Danang. background old PTF Base and Monkey Well we Well I answered once about the FNGs. New year found I started building the 3 strong backs at 7 Motors on Monday morning June 3rd. Late in the day we had built them a nice hootch and had them moved in. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. On May 15 I had finished 6 or 8 escape doors. The lumber and wood crates in upper right was the start of our lumber yard. 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. To save them from Communism was not the right answer because most of them did not feel that Communism was a threat ! They were all in alignment with our generators. Boy life was improving a lot. I had never been a boss and language was an obstacle so there was a lot of pencil drawings or just comparing construction with the closest hooch. Thursday morning we stripped the forms and started building the framing of the first building. Management and planning of the logistic flow needed refinement, as ships arrived en masse with cargo improperly stowed and packaged. 44 Declassified Vietnam War Photos Taken By U.S. Army Photographers View Gallery History is not a fixed set of facts. Yes, we would help them build new huts and we would patch up their children and pay compensation for the damages done. Probable a pissed of old farmer getting off a couple round while drinking his morning coffee. The village it refers to was just north of Camp Books. Suddenly the helicopter went nose high and stopped going forward. In your time in the CBs did you decide to be the opposite and do the right thing with newbies? 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. Older Vietnam veteran who served in the US Navy at Camp Tien Sha, Da Nang, 1968-1969. Camp Tien Sha, Vietnam. C Chi tunnels. just out of the picture on the right. [1][3]:2, In August 1967, the headquarters of NSA Danang was moved from downtown Danang to Camp Tien Sha. Some We had fox holes around the generators and fuel tank and I would sit there looking up at that big ass fuel tank thinking that if the VC hit that with a RPG (rocket propelled grenade) I was going to be turned into a crispy critter. there was a war going on. Our boat and one other transported the He was laying on his back and we had tied his arms (wrists) to the legs on one end of the desk and then had tide his upper thighs to the other legs of the desk. readers. once. These truck convoys would run from Danang to Quang Tri Marine base every few days and would spend nights or off time either at Quang Tri or Phu Bi or Danang. Very close now and it was clear that they weren't going to make it over the hurricane fence at the perimeter. The field had been filled with red dirt and rocks and had been compacted with heavy equipment. 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. Relive & share the memories of your service time with your brothers & sisters in arms today. Then when I went back to the shop that night I would have Bettencourt cut me a bunch of rebar stakes 2 ft long. The Magazine was found VVA's goals . 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. Didn't get any meals so after we were finished we ate sandwiches with the mid watch Marines at the mess hall. That episode followed rioting along China Beach by black . Chu Lai Base Area. By TET of 1968 most of the rural Vietnamese had been moved into relocation camps (Dog Patch). That was the LTs first rocket attack and he didn't react fast enough. The kids were always hanging around and the best way to keep them from stealing was to befriend them by giving them candy. I believe we also tied him around the waist. The three strong backs that I was to build for 7th motors was put on hold. . [3]:33, In mid-October 1968 the Deep Water Pier complex (160712N 1081250E / 16.12N 108.214E / 16.12; 108.214) on the Tien Sha peninsula was completed, beginning operations in September 1968. I didn't think about the danger but was aware of it. camp tien sha danang, vietnam 1968. 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! Khoi Tran and Hong Th Hin faved this 3,723 views 2 faves 0 comments Taken on March 17, 2017 Some rights reserved Nikon SUPER COOLSCAN 9000 ED The MPs had used their white belts as tourniquets just above the knees. probably had some car handling skills. things. With Coate gone Judy would still sleep in his hooch and she would ride around on the stake truck, hang around the office or the hooch s. Judy hated Marines, and Vietnamese men but she was alright with Vietnamese women as long as they treated her nice. Retro. On the far end of the bridge right We destroyed what they had and were teaching them skills that didn't even fit into their culture. This was a Sunday afternoon BBQ about 1800 hr. The Marines in that ambush had fired on me to scare me because they thought I was the duty officer making the rounds. hair cutting all my time there aside Had tied their hands behind their backs and executed them. Here is the satellite view of 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. There were so many sound at night and for my own safety I had to learn them all. Find Camp Tien Sha, Headquarters unit information, patches, operation history, veteran photos and more on TogetherWeServed.com. 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. It was very clear that they did not want a FNG getting in their way. Tracers were bouncing all over in front of the truck. Warehouses, open storage areas, cargo handling equipment, and good exit routes from the port were limited. Electrician CN (E-3) Pat Brown, Builder CN (E-3) Craig Taylor, Builder 3Rd Class Calabresi. What ever it was we were done by shortly after 1600 hr. The bundle was given to the mother who would take the bundle out side and set it down in the dirt by the street. Vietnam veterans, age 60+, American. There were at least 500 RVN Sailors, 6 American Sailors, and two Koreans who worked for Philco Ford. My AR 15 slept on my left side right next to my body so I could always feel where it was. 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. [1], During 1965 the logistic operation at Danang suffered from lack of suitable or sufficient harbor craft, cargo handling equipment, and port personnel. I had my broken leg cot and was living out of my sea bag. There was about a weeks over lap so the knew Chief could learn his job! It sure seemed longer then a month, to me it was more like a few months! The new wood frame building that I did was behind the camera. So as May 1968 ended I had been in Vietnam for 1 month! seating along the sides of the rear area. It was more the "ambulance" configuration with a I surveyed work out the details with him. I jumped into the fighting hole beside the post and yelled at the Marines there "holy shit some one is shooting at me!" When we arrived at Red Beach the Seabee team shop was a mad house. march in columns of two over to that building. it, there were about a dozen shower He spent the night at the shop bunker by himself , totally confused as to what was going on. Pham Ba went around back to take a pee. There was a Marine listening ambush set up outside the perimeter in that area. I cried to myself on the way back to the base. camp where you get sheared. time does that. What I really Ya, we continued our work and started building my hooch. I am not sure what possessed me to write poems there. Here in Vietnam with the advanced gangrene she was going to die and there was nothing that could be done! Danang, Naval Support Activity, Operations, Lighterage, U-Boats. My Vietnamese workers were hunkered down by the lumber pile about 30 ft from me.Then I noticed little puffs of dirt kicking up several feet away from me towards the north. The doc asked if I could baby sit the little girl while he and the nurse did a surgery. Da Nang Air Base (1957-1975) was a Republic of Vietnam Air Force (VNAF) facility. $10 of that came from me. We were among the first units to arrive after ti was secured by Armor and Artillery. There are 186 crew members registered for the Naval Support Activity Danang. He got in line and they loaded his truck with beds, lots of beds. We were told that we were teaching them skills so they would be able to have a useful job. This is the poem I wrote about the little girl who died from gangrene. Different kinds of flairs, the different mortar sounds and small arms fire. It was a strange way for a job to start. It's the 4th largest city in Vietnam. Back at the hootch the Seabees got in a major debate about where to put me. There was always something interesting to watch at Camp Books. A small craft repair facility and an Auxiliary Floating Drydock (AFDL) helped keep NSA vessels in working order. when I was there. We were here, It was time to go look for some food! Significant Events 19-31 August 1970 19-28 October 1970 5 November 1970 13 November 1970 15 November 1970 Go through their front gate then out their back gate to the causeway. This was The bunker in back was the Korean bunker that I slept in while I was building my hooch. It was common for the Marines to sneak off base at night for a couple hours in the Village. It was just after 1700 so I was good. My big problem was how to build those damn concrete forms without using wood stakes. The main US Navy Fleet Post Office that processed all mail to every American in I . and created an overlay of the changes to the harbor, which was It seemed a bit strange to see everything so neat and tidy when A regular jeep would accommodate 5 people, while in this There were no boat parts in supply identified as "enlisted head." - Alan, Drawing Welcome to Viet----fuckn Nam you FNGs ( funking new guys) !!! [2] During the next several years, the command created subordinate NSA detachments at Chu Lai, Hu, Tn M, ng H, Ca Vit, Ph Bi and Sa Hunh. He was honorably discharged in 1968 after completing his tour in Vietnam, as Petty . I was called to active durty in July Us transit guys were on two section duty (port and starboard was the Navy term for that). Those care packages and her letters help keep me going when ever times got really tough! I would have to find some time to build a foot locker. whole story here. As good as we were trying to do for the Vietnamese we sure as hell were not winning their hearts and minds! Local Page TIMES-MIRROR and OBSERVER Section B WARREN, PA., WEDNESDAY. I asked where she was now and he said the Priest had taken her to Da Nang to be burried! 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. It was good for our working relation ship to do them favors so that I could count on them to perform for me when I really needed them. With tears in my eyes I told the guard that I had been helping the doc at the children's clinic and he could take his fucking travel chit and shove it up his ass! it for their personal use. Download this Camp Tien Sha photo now. around on the gravel surface at the PTF base. On February 10, 1970, SN Robert T. Sudduth, a sailor assigned to the camp, was traveling in truck from the Camp Tien Sha Annex to the Tien Sha Ramp when he accidently fell from the vehicle. heads" but they were always stolen Guest 31-Aug-2016 02:35: . YFUs and LCUs such as the 62 were assigned to Lighterage Div of the Naval Support Activity, DaNang, and were based at Camp Tien Sha Annex. I stood there wondering how I was going to drive wood stakes into that hard ground. Level the frames and tie them to the stakes and I would have my concrete forms complete. Everyone was busy as hell and I didn't have any idea as to what was going on. After I let them go I was sitting on my tool box waiting for the crew truck to come pick me up. It was But when shit happens to you and you are the victim, everything changed! The next day a Chinook helicopter dropped a cable down to the burned out UH-1 and hauled it away. Not all the time but sometimes . He finished his tour with detective work as one of six NSA investigators at Camp Tien Sha, adjacent to Da Nang. "personal" shower head and keeping 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. Sunday late afternoons we were able to get over to the Red Beach causeway and get in some water sessions. and Captain David A . For the time being they were stashed in my hooch and on May 24, Karl Voiles spent his first day assembling beds. shower heads came out from the side She smelled horrible! Inside of that trailer, face down were 2 dead Marines. The usual row of sinks, toilets and "enlisted". First I had to do a couple hour job at the 1st MP Quonset hut. ( Short timers uniforms were your oldest most faded fatigues but always clean and well kept.) On 27 February 1969 a People's Army of Vietnam rocket hit LCU-1500 while it was loading at the Bridge Cargo Ramp killing 13 crewmen. course. This is our new Chief Builder. I took my time cooling myself off in that shower then went Coate was not there to know about Puppy. Camp Horn is a former United States Marine Corps and United States Army base located in Danang, Vietnam. Seems like every time I was working there at least one or two little kids would go out of there dead! I turned 20 years old and of coarse it went un- noticed although I had gotten a care package from Annett Burrel, a couple surfing magazines from my brother Jay and a birthday card from my girl friend Linda! I noticed an old gray hair lady,just a skeleton in the hospital bed and asked the doctor about that. I dreaded standing that watch but ever 5 and then 7 days I was going to get it! The doc explained that she had been burned by napalm and had gotten gangrene and that was the smell. I could feel the rasping of that bone saw through the stick in the farmers mouth! The memory of that little girl is as strong now as then and I can not think about her without getting choked up and teary eyed ! Well guess what ? good times in the "duty jeep". The advantage was that I got a whole extra year of dive time at Hoods Canal with Pett and got to do deep water dives with him ( 120 to 140 feet) in the summer of 1966. There hours were 0800 to1700 so it was impossible for me to go. The carpenter flat bed truck. from two times. standing duty after working hours you were pretty much alone. Over the months as I got to know my Vietnamese and they opened up to me the most asked question they had for me. 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. identified as "enlisted head" in BU 3 Beerworth s crew took over and finished the walls and roof on Saturday May 18. Our mess hall, about 70 yards from my hootch took a direct hit on the serving line and kitchen area. May 1. - 300 dpi - RGB, Royalty-free licenses let you pay once to use copyrighted images and video clips in personal and commercial projects on an ongoing basis without requiring additional payments each time you use that content. really care. So I took a trip in September 2016 back in Subic and got a pro hair cut. T are sections in the book about Camp Tien Sha, Cua Viet, Dong Ha, Tan My, Hue, Phu Bai, Chu Lai, and Sa Huynh. Da Nang Cluster. enough for me. Fish and Game, as a diver/biologist, and retired as the Charlie 2. sucked and the barber dissed me for [3] NSA Danang originally operated from a commercial pier on the city side of the Hn River and this "Museum Ramp" (160300N 1081328E / 16.05N 108.2245E / 16.05; 108.2245) near the Cham Museum began operation in November 1965 off-loading LCU's and LST's. I have spent countless hours over the past 15 years driving my motorbike around the Camp Books area looking for any of our workers. I am sure had I not done that , the Chief, when he came down to the hootch, would have solved the problem by sending me back to China Beach. Before I went into the Navy I had a H e had white hair and a white beard and very much looked like Santa Clause. Some time before the end of the month we got three more guys in . As I recall Taylor dropped out when we got to the ocean diving but Pat Brown stuck it out and we became dive buddies. In the early days the security perimeter of the base was only about 50 feet from our shop and was not very well guarded. Rank Among Most Heavily Sprayed Provinces in Vietnam. The kid had a big yellow Tonka dump truck and would sit for hours in the sand playing with that truck. say I rarely ventured onto the left Beerworth dropped us at 1st MPs. layout - (07-07-02) This would also give Beerworth time to get his guys out on their job. morning. Another interesting point is the H&S Co. My Vietnamese had never even figured out what was happening and were still hunkered down by the lumber pile. So my hooch would now have 5 of us. Camp Tien Sha Vietnam 1968 from Monkey Mountain Bombardier Pretorian Aug 16, 2013 Good photo, get a good look at the base. All terrain forklifts would scurry back and forth off a small cargo plane in the middle of the night, all I One rocket struck this barracks, but the man in this room survived by . The firemen loaded foam canister on a mule and were able to get to the UH-1 and finally put the fire out. I was driving on the perimeter road with the dry storage ASM wall on my right. Style attributes. Drive out the back gate and about 2 miles to the Navy Seabee base. Why are you here in Vietnam ? I wish I would have known about it then! 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. Select the period (starting by the reporting year): precomm - 1967 | 1968 | 1969 - now Register and add yourself to the Crew List of the Naval Support Activity Danang. We were also vulnerable to sappers . Anyone who tried to open that door without giving our pass word would have been shot. Yes that's puppy and our new steel worker (Calhoun). On Sunday May 19 I was dropped off alone ( The Vietnamese got Sundays off) and my job was to build steps and a door for the building. I think 15x12. It took until 2000 hours to finish that first slab. LCU-1498, then the chart office at the White Elephant. The two guys shot in the skivvy house that night were, Pvt. Marine damage reports were never very accurate and it is hard for me to remember what was damage when. [2] In the fall of 1966 I was transferred My work hours were 0600 to 1800 which made it impossible to use any of the base services! loved cars and fast driving. Looking back, have https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Naval_Support_Activity_Danang&oldid=1137856150, Military installations of the United States in South Vietnam, Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the Naval History & Heritage Command, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 6 February 2023, at 20:12. Unfortunately when we got there it was closed for one hour for lunch and Coate did not have the time to hang around. Every month she would send a large box of candy, cookies and other goodies. Camp Tien Sha is a former United States Navy base located in Danang, Vietnam. The Doc took a big syringe and needle and shot both legs up with anesthesia. I finished the shower and got The United States used it as a major base during the Vietnam War (1959-1975), stationing Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine units there. Spent four years in college, and achieved QM3, and qualified in ! 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). What the F is wrong with her? The rocket attacks in my AO meant that I was called out to man my post which was defense of our base generators and our very large generator fuel tank. So every week there would be a different doctor. I went out and sat on my toolbox and thought about what I had just experienced. There was only one hospital bed and a couple cots in the building at that time. FLC took twenty one 122mm rocket rounds and on May 22,1968 at 0200 hr FLC took 12 122mm rocket rounds. January 30, 1968 marked the beginning of the Tet Offensive. It started raining Saturday June1st and rained continuously until Wednesday morning but that didn't slow down work any. So over time it was easier to just not know anyone. map and make modifications, please email your I recognize the admin building on the right, everything else is pretty vague. He was honorably discharged in 1968 after completing his tour in Vietnam, as Petty . Alan on base We had an air conditioner in the office and because I worked out side all day I was not used to air conditioning! maids walked in and started cleaning After that LT Branch never stayed late at the office, he would leave at 1700 to take Miss Nguyen home to Da Nang. maintenance, and generally taking If you are able to extract the bgmarshall@aol.com. ALL work centers report in : AWC # 1 reports everything is quite ! Then we saw a little dot far up Elephant Valley. The shop doors were always open and a light on in the shop. [4]:2[2], In August 1967, the headquarters of NSA Danang was moved from downtown Danang to Camp Tien Sha. Da Nang, Vietnam, Camp Tien Sha, 351 Days in Da Nang Ray Norton Me, age 23, sitting on my bunk drinking a beer and smoking a cigarette. I was going to have to hit the ground running if I intended to stay with this team. It might be inaccurate in some details, suffice to say, I click here or click "back" until you I couldn't grasp what was going on at the time. was the building directly adjoining Around back there was a Jeep with a utility trailer on behind. Some part of it was always listening to what was going on . Their shirt tail were hanging out and sleeves not rolled up (Marine style). It was kind of a taste of what we would get when the monsoons came in September. thought about was the airbase in Danang was under attack, The Brief. When I found out about that I went with Bet to talk to that officer. I donated money several times while at Camp Books. I had orders in September 1966 to go to The best attractions in Da Nang include a good mix of centuries-old pagodas, French colonial buildings, as well as tranquil beaches with clear blue waters, and verdant national parks. at Camp Fay. That's danger close to the shop! 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. May 27 was my birthday. In DaNang we had what was called the "duty jeep". The Brief. It was a long miserable cold 12 hour night. waiting in transit at the Long Beach Naval Station, I got orders to You forget the bad things and you remember the good They had decided to spend the night at the Skivvy house (whore house) in Dog Patch. Luxury. TWS is the largest online community of Veterans existing today and is a powerful Veteran locator. She was wearing light blue pajamas with little lambs printed on it. And search more of iStock's library of royalty-free stock images that features Vietnam photos available for quick and easy download. Maybe it's just me. I took this photofrom the stern of YFU 80 which was docked at SCRF, looking across Da Nang harbor at sunset. Had fun there, especially since I had to wear civilian clothes. 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. My first assignment was YFU-54, then We stopped work and watched. In November 1965 500 men moved into the old French Army camp, Camp Tien Sha (Tin Sa) at the foot of Monkey Mountain. It had 4 windows so I went to the window for H. I handed the clerk my records pack. 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. My friend and his dog Rusty had cornered a very large possum against a tree and I went around the back of the tree and shot that possum at the base of the skull at point blank with a 22 cal short. thought about was the airbase in Danang was under attack, While the Seabee's exploits in Vietnam would carry on the tradition set during the Second World War, their work in Southeast Asia actually . If they were caught they were punished by court marshal and were busted one pay grade. They were only a couple hundred yards away! We knew the helicopter was in trouble because of the trail of smoke and how fast it was flying. Individuality, not. The doctors at the Hoa Kahn Clinic were all Navy I think mostly off the hospital ships, they would volunteer for the clinic and rotate out every week. as soon as they were installed. specialty up the Cua Viet to Dong Ha, where we supported the Marines I faked being a doctor from the USA and was shown around a little. Yes that's me smiling up from the 122mm rocket crater. The two crew members jumped out just under the flames .They carried their M-60 machine guns. a shower enclosure that wasn't The nurse was carrying a little girl about 4 years old. The Post office was about 75 yards from my hootch. Often times during a rocket or mortar attack rounds would over shoot landing in Hoa Kahn or Dog Patch ,providing children for the Clinic. Danang Vietnam 1966 1967 Camp Tien Sha was an old French army base. and I was just finishing up the door. 5440 x 3520 px (18.13 x 11.73 in.) It really, really broke my heart! 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.
