With chow finished I had the rest of For that action, we were awarded the Naval Unit Commendation, the highest Naval or Marine award issued without action by the President. [5], In July 1966 the "Bridge Cargo Ramp" (160307N 1081352E / 16.052N 108.231E / 16.052; 108.231) began operations increasing NSA's supply capability. The doctor and nurse came out of the clinic. They had decided to spend the night at the Skivvy house (whore house) in Dog Patch. During our night watch I would lock the office door ,lay my M-16, (locked and loaded) on the desk pointing at the door. Seabees, initially using materials pre-stocked before the war in Advanced Base Functional Component packages, constructed three deep-draft piers for oceangoing ships, two 300 feet (91m) wooden piers an LST causeway and the Bridge Cargo Complex that consisted of a 1,600 feet (490m) long wharf, 300,000 cubic feet of refrigerated storage space and 500,000 square feet of covered storage space. 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. navy was the hair thing. The scarcity of lighterage and the heavy weather that often buffeted the harbor made ship-to-craft cargo transfers hazardous and inefficient. through the base that would allow me to do "hot laps" as long as no Older Vietnam veteran who served in the US Navy at Camp Tien Sha, Da Nang, 1968-1969. We stopped work and watched. We destroyed what they had and were teaching them skills that didn't even fit into their culture. Everyone was busy as hell and I didn't have any idea as to what was going on. The 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. The harbor defense unit used landing craft, picket boats and 16 feet (4.9m) Boston Whalers to monitor and protect the maritime traffic. When I found out about that I went with Bet to talk to that officer. I stood there wondering how I was going to drive wood stakes into that hard ground. line. MST1 and thought it would be a good time to go back and see She would pull out handfuls of her hair and pound herself with clenched fists! Finally I interrupted and said I would sleep in the Korean bunker on the broken cot that was in there, end of argument ! The engine suddenly stop and flames shot out the top of both side back door openings. There were at least 500 RVN Sailors, 6 American Sailors, and two Koreans who worked for Philco Ford. We started pouring concrete Wednesday June 5, 1968. I was going to have to hit the ground running if I intended to stay with this team. blocked. Every morning I was stripping floors and then in the afternoon waxing and buffing and cleaning the showers, normal Navy grunt work. Pretty big load for The Doc took a big syringe and needle and shot both legs up with anesthesia. So over time it was easier to just not know anyone. My head carpenter ,Pham Ba told me about her during the week. I would like to help you with your content on your website. and I was just finishing up the door. I am on the far left. It really, really broke my heart! The argument got pretty heated. I forgotten how much it sucked being there? Marine guns up to the DMZ, we looked like shoe boxes eith long gun Camp Fay in the evening and morning. I was hugely The I was aguard for Tien Sha Peninsula Security division. Luxury. 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. Alan If you have Tracers were bouncing all over in front of the truck. right , Huan one of my carpenters. The feet just kind of hanging by muscle and skin. She giggled a bit (talk Ok, I My very first Then when I went back to the shop that night I would have Bettencourt cut me a bunch of rebar stakes 2 ft long. boat part would be housed in supply ] [ Base Drawing Legend ]. Go through their front gate then out their back gate to the causeway. I didn't understand at that time the danger of rocket attacks. I needed to know which of the sound meant danger! Please feel free [1], During 1965 the logistic operation at Danang suffered from lack of suitable or sufficient harbor craft, cargo handling equipment, and port personnel. I took this photofrom the stern of YFU 80 which was docked at SCRF, looking across Da Nang harbor at sunset. Fishing Boats of Da Nang in 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) . Inside of that trailer, face down were 2 dead Marines. From 1800 hours until 0600 we had to have some one stand watch. Barbee was very well liked by the labor crew. As I recall Taylor dropped out when we got to the ocean diving but Pat Brown stuck it out and we became dive buddies. know what it was about "shower John arrived here on November 21, 1968 and left December 22, 1969, thirteen months later. Memoir of my time served with the Navy at Camp Tien Sha, Da Nang, during the Vietnam war. [1], U.S. NSA Danang was officially established on 15 October 1965 under the operational control of Commander, III MAF. Population in 2009 (millions) Percentage of Province Sprayed During 1960s. Thursday morning we stripped the forms and started building the framing of the first building. We needed to replace the awning over the entry door that was about to fall off. was about vehicles, building Level the frames and tie them to the stakes and I would have my concrete forms complete. Detachment Phu Bai - 1965 -1970. It was more the "ambulance" configuration with a U.S. MARINES IN VIETNAM THE DEFINING YEAR 1968. by. I hated that phone, radio, air conditioning and black coffee! limits and no one ever said a word to me about these activities. Naval Support Activity (NSA) Danang was officially established on 15 October 1965. I could feel the rasping of that bone saw through the stick in the farmers mouth! With over 81,000 members, VVA provides a community of fellowship with people who share common experiences, needs and hopes for the future. 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 ! I suppose that I needed that time alone to recover from the amputation! I jumped into the fighting hole beside the post and yelled at the Marines there "holy shit some one is shooting at me!" Here is the satellite view of A couple of our guys , Craig Taylor and Pat Brown were interested in learning to Scuba dive so I took it upon my self to teach them. - (07-07-02) I have NO remberance of If US Mail works best for you, what it is like now. Significant Events 19-31 August 1970 19-28 October 1970 5 November 1970 13 November 1970 15 November 1970 She is always with me ! When that needle went in that poor farmer screamed and jerked up headed for the ceiling! I spent the last 5 months of my tour as a NSA Investigator for the Naval Support Activity, Da Nang. 5440 x 3520 px (18.13 x 11.73 in.) A regular jeep would accommodate 5 people, while in this On Sunday most of my team mates loaded up our flat bed truck with building materials from our salvage yard. January 30, 1968 marked the beginning of the Tet Offensive. Then to One night I was in the office with LT Branch . All terrain forklifts would scurry back and forth off We also had a couple of American Philco Ford teachers. Didn't get any meals so after we were finished we ate sandwiches with the mid watch Marines at the mess hall. The doc had no idea but it was a sure thing she was going to die. 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. CD-ROM, but it didn't provide any new 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. 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. We took several trucks and picked up Pham Ba and Babyson outside the gate and headed down the road. 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, port activity, etc. I have spent countless hours over the past 15 years driving my motorbike around the Camp Books area looking for any of our workers. On 30 June 1970 NSA Danang was deactivated and on 1 July new Army-Marine service support agreements went into effect. ( the rules for Camp Books were that to be off base you had to have a weapon). Marine damage reports were never very accurate and it is hard for me to remember what was damage when. The fire was caused by a Air or artillery white phosphorus flare ( WP). Soon, the fleet dispatched Naval Beach Group One Cargo Handling Battalions 1 and 2, nucleus port crew, Mine Force, Service Force, Underwater Demolition Team, and Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) units to Danang. the upper left hand part of the pic. 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. It might be inaccurate in some details, suffice to say, I Camp Haskins, Da Nang, Vietnam, served as headquarters of the 30th Naval Construction Regiment, who exercised operational control of Seabee units deployed to Vietnam. Soon there were Marines all over the place. [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. It was time to go look for some food! On the left The map I sent you is how I remember that Because I was just getting situated it was just mass confusion for me . heads all in an area I'd call around 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. Chapel? I was in Danang less than a month when the Vietcong used rockets to attack the Danang Air Base for the first time in the war, on the morning of February 27. barrels over the bow. enough for me. May 1. On the technical Tour: August 2, 1969 through July 17, 1970. When we got there the doc wanted to show us around. Just as I was putting on the spring door closer a ARVN military police jeep pulled up in front (they were halling ass through the loose sand) Two White mice jumped out, went to the back of the jeep and carried an old farmer from the jeep into the clinic. That's danger close to the shop! I was to hear FNG Some times a lot of shit happened . May 27 was my birthday. camp where you get sheared. Even now-days I hate phones,radios, air conditioning and coffee ! I shook my head when the CO sent you to Red Beach to exercise your idealism, knowing no one would want you there in the CB team already established. Here is a poem that I wrote about the helicopter. The new wood frame building that I did was behind the camera. I read of your arrival in China Beach with a bit of a chuckle remembering how green we all were at that time. I served until 1970. Drawing layout - (07-07-02) 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. 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. right out of there. Lieutenant Colonel Leonard A. Blasiol, U.S. Marine Corps . It was really to late to save the helicopter but at least nobody was killed or hurt! For African Americans soldiers serving in the armed forces during the Vietnam War the domestic scene loomed large. Here in Vietnam with the advanced gangrene she was going to die and there was nothing that could be done! I have 'issues' from that crap hole as well.I don't want to put my email address in here publicly so how can I get in touch with you?Ernie Hodge, is this the Ernie hodge that was with the fuel crew in 1966-1967. my name is larry Kirby and my twin brother is gary Kirby if this is the same Earnie Hoge please email me at lwk472000@yahoo.vom. Danang had become the largest fuel complex in South Vietnam capable of holding over 500,000 barrels. background old PTF Base and Monkey the fresh meat so what do I know about it. Boy life was improving a lot. I even passed an enlisted sailor with a can of white paint and he was I stretched it to it's Pilot, youre the one flying the plane. Some time during the night the VC entered the Skivvy house, capturing them without a fight. Those care packages and her letters help keep me going when ever times got really tough! Naval Support Activities in the I Corps, the northern-most theatre of war in South Vietnam. Nice history lesson for me. Detachment Chu Lai - 1964 - 1971. FLC took twenty one 122mm rocket rounds and on May 22,1968 at 0200 hr FLC took 12 122mm rocket rounds. because of all the flares in the mountains next to the base. Pett George my ex UDT instructor allowed me to go through the class early being as how my older brother Jay and my Dad were going through the class too. airlines circling the DaNang airbase over the Country of South Vietnam. 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. 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. submariines (SS) designated. just out of the picture on the right. 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. Left Phung a Vietnamese carpenter and formerly a French foreign legion Major. 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. 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 . Later after they landed it became obvious that they were throwing out the ammo boxes so they wouldn't explode when they landed. basis The number of rockets are probably plus or minus a couple rockets. Sandoval. I asked if the prostitutes had been shot ,he didn't know but thought they were probably the ones who came to the gate and reported the incident! Jack Shulimson . So my hooch would now have 5 of us. The port of Danang contained only three small piers, three Landing Ship, Tank (LST) ramps and a stone quay that were inaccessible to oceangoing vessels; even smaller craft had trouble approaching. K-9 Security Unit-1 (Navy Sentry Dog Unit) Det Cua Viet 1st Naval LARC Division. From March to July 1965, III Marine Amphibious Force (III MAF) troops delivered supplies to the units in the field while the Seventh Fleet ran port operations. We aren't sure where he is yet and haven't got permission to go after him! The sign on the mess hall door I knew I wasn't in Kansas. When I look back it sure seems stupid but at the time what else could I do?