Combat Infantry Badge
In February we continued our normal rotations. One week Long Binh, one week night ambush patrol south of Saigon and one week in Di An in the rear. One week when we came back from a week of night ambush patrol, the higher-ups at Di An, thought it was only right that our platoon pull bunker guard for the week we were in the rear. Just as soon as we came back to the company area, we were told to report for bunker guard. Everyone first thought it was a joke. We didn’t have time to shower, clean ourselves up or clean our equipment. They made us get into our vehicles and drive to where we were going to be inspected and assigned to our bunkers for the night. As we stood there, waiting for an officer to show up and inspect us. We were all complaining about how unfair this was. We were starting to get bad attitudes. Soon, the Duty Lieutenant showed up and yelled for everyone to get into rank and come to attention. As we stood there at attention, the Lieutenant started to inspect our platoon. He said, “Don’t you men own a razor? Why are your uniforms dirty? When is the last time you cleaned your rifles? When is the last time you showered? When is the last time your boots were shined?” Everyone started to explain that we just got back from down south of Saigon, where we just spent 7 nights of night ambush patrol. We told him that as soon as we got back we were ordered to come right here. The Duty Lieutenant ordered us to stay where we were and that he was going to make a phone call. In about 10 minutes, the Lieutenant came back and relieved us from bunker guard. This was the last time we ever had to pull bunker guard.
The rest of February was pretty uneventful except rumors were starting. When we came back from Long Binh, the rumor was that we were no longer going to back up the LRRPs and in April they were going to disband the 3/17th Air Cav and farm us out to other units. Morale was down. We had been through so much in a short period of time and bonds were formed. To have to go to another unit and have to start over would be terrible. Thank God these rumors never came true.
In March, the action started to pick back up. Several times we were inserted for the LRRPs as more movement was happening on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The Brass at Headquarters decided that they needed to be inserted into an enemy area so they could qualify for a Combat Infantry Badge. The Brass decided that all three platoons would go out along with Headquarter personnel and be inserted. We did not know what was going on until it was happening. The fire serene went off and we put on our gear and ran to the waiting helicopters. We loaded up like normal and took off. Once in the air we could see 10 other helicopter in front of us. We flew somewhere over by the Mekong Delta and we were the last ones in. There had to be at least 75 people on the ground. As our helicopters came in for a landing we could see a long line of guys moving out down a trail heading for the water. They were all stretched out moving like a snake. Once on the ground and our helicopters cleared, LT Kudla got us in line and we moved out down the same trail as the others. We walked for about a half hour before we saw the water of the Delta. We could hear the helicopters off in the distance and heard the radio transmissions. It seems that they were starting to come back and pick up everyone. We were still down by the water and we could hear another wave of choppers coming in for a pickup. All of sudden panic started to set in because no one knew where our platoon was. We were separated from everyone else. No one could see us and we were almost ready to be picked up. First we started to walk fast, and then we started to run. We were still by the water, but now stretched out. I could see the man in front of me and the guy behind me, but no one else. All of a sudden the guy in front of me stopped. There was a fork in the trail. One way went up the bank and the other continued along the water. “Which way do we go”? Both trails looked to be equally beaten down. I could hear another wave of helicopters coming in and I thought they were coming to pick us up. I yelled in a panic, “go up the bank!". Quickly up the bank we went. Soon we were up to the top of the hill and the helicopters were still on the ground, waiting for us to load. We ran as quickly as we could and there were still two men behind us. Soon there was just one helicopter left on the ground. We loaded onto the chopper and here came the last two men of our platoon. We made it, I thought as we lifted off of the ground. This is what we call a cluster fu*k. This was a big waste of man power and resources just for the Big Wigs to get a Combat Infantry Badge.
SGT Joe
It was April 1970 already. A new month was beginning. We were working near Nhon Trach which was about 30 miles south of Saigon. Normally we would be pulling night ambush patrols in the area. On this day, April 9, 1970, we were told to load up on the three helicopters that were waiting for us. We were going to be inserted somewhere in the area. We lifted off and were airborne when I asked Lt. Kudla where we were going. He gave me the coordinates and I passed them along to the other two Radio Men. We were flying over what appeared to be rice patties and soon we were descending and getting ready to land in one of the rice patties. Once the skids hit the ground, the pilots gave the “get off” sign and we exited the chopper. The helicopters quickly took off leaving us there on the ground. We soon circled up and the Lieutenant told us that the reason we were there is because every time the helicopters flew over the rice patties and the trees that separated each patty from the next, boobie traps would go off. Our job was to walk through the rice patties, to the tree lines and search for boobie traps and detonate them so it would be safe for the helicopters to fly over them. Oh, this did not sound good! What did we know about detonating boobie traps?
The rice patty was muddy and didn’t have any real water standing in it, but it was muddy, wet and hard to walk in. Our Sergeant, Jose Alvarado and the point man, a Vietnamese Chieu Hoi, lead us to a dike which we could walk on without getting wet. I was behind the Lieutenant and we were not in our regular platoon order. The order in front of us was the Chieu Hoi, Sergeant Joe and Private Elswick. Lieutenant Kudla and I were next in line. We had walked for about 20 minutes, nice and slow, when we came to the tree line that supposedly had the boobie traps. I could see that there was an irrigation ditch in front of the tree line that ran the length of the rice patty. The ditch was about 7 feet deep and about 10 feet wide. We all stopped and SGT Joe and the Lieutenant decided what our next move would be. Soon the Lieutenant came back and gave the hand signal for everyone to start forward. It appeared that we were going to cross the irrigation ditch and get on the other side of the tree line.
The Chieu Hoi started down into the ditch. He was small, short and soon I could not see his head as he stood at the bottom of the ditch. SGT Joe sat on the edge of the ditch and was telling the Chieu Hoi to crawl up the other side and get out of the ditch. I could see the head of the Chieu Hoi as he was jumping up, trying to grab the top of the ditch to pull himself up to the other side. I saw him jump about 3 times before he finally grabbed the top. As soon as his hand reached the top and he tried to get a hold, he had grabbed a trip wire of a boobie trap, and it detonated with a loud boom. The only good thing was the boobie trap was facing away from our direction. What was coming in our direction was the back blast. SGT Joe was hit and was knocked off the bank and he fell right into the bottom of the ditch. We were all so conditioned that if we heard a loud bang, we just naturally hit the ground and got ready to fire at anything that moved. When I heard the bang, I too hit the ground and took a shooting position. Next we heard, “Medic”, being yelled by Pvt Elswick and then Lieutenant Kudla. The next thing I knew our medic had crawled up to me and started to rip open my pant legs to apply a compress to my shins. I said, “They need you up front, I am fine, go up front”. He said that he would come back to me because I had blood coming from both shins. He crawled around me and made it to SGT Joe, at the bottom of the ditch with the Chieu Hoi, Elswick and Lt. Kudla. SGT Joe looked like he had been shot with a shotgun. He took most of the blast to his face, neck and chest area since he was sitting down. How Elswick and Lt. Kudla never received any of the back blast was a puzzle. I was behind Kudla and I received shrapnel in both shins. As our medic was working on SGT Joe, I could start to feel pain in my shins. Back in High School, I was hit by a baseball bat that was thrown off to the side and hit me in the shins and this is what it felt like. I had blood coming out of about 4 holes on my left shin and 3 or 4 out of my right shin. I could see my pants legs ripped and I saw my skin. It looked like it was turning green. Could it be possible that I could be getting gangrene?
Soon, the Chieu Hoi, Elswick, the medic and Lt. Kudla were pulling out SGT Joe on a poncho liner. When Lt. Kudla got to my position he used my radio and called for a Medevac. Our medic went ahead and placed compresses on both of my shins. I was asked if I could walk and I said yes. We could hear choppers off in the distance coming towards us. There were 3 helicopters in sight and I asked Kudla what was going on, where was the Medevac? He said that the Medevac was busy and we were going to be taken back in our regular choppers. Soon the choppers landed in the rice patties and SGT Joe was load in first and then the rest of us loaded up. We started to go back in when the helicopter turned and we were going in another direction. Soon we were sitting down in a field. I thought that SGT Joe and I would stay on the choppers and be transported back to the rear, but that was not going to happen. Everyone was told to get off and everyone did. I could feel my legs getting sore as time was going on. The helicopter soon took off and all 18 of us were back on the ground. The platoon soon circled up and Lt. Kudla said that we were going to go on another mission. He said that SGT Joe and I would stay right where we were at and that a Medevac would be coming for us in about 5 to 10 minutes. They left SGT Joe’s rifle with me as they left us there in the field. I sat there by SGT Joe and could hear that he was having a hard time breathing. He had blood coming out of him from a lot of small holes in and around his neck. He was unconscious and moaning. If the enemy were to find us in this field, SGT Joe would be no help at all. I guess I would have to fire both rifles at the same time. It was the longest 10 to 15 minutes of my life.
Finally, the Medevac came and landed. Medics got off the helicopter and took SGT Joe first on the poncho litter and loaded him and then came back and helped me walk to the helicopter and got on. We were finally on our way to the hospital. SGT Joe was whisked away quickly and I was seen at the Aid Station. I was told that it would be better to let the shrapnel work its way to the top of the skin on it's own than for them to dig around and take it out now. I agreed and was soon on my way back to my Unit. This was the last time I ever saw SGT Joe. He was shipped to Japan and spent about a year in military hospitals.
SGT Joseph Alvarado
Guess where we are?
We were getting ready to rotate to Long Binh from Di An. When we rotated to Long Binh we drove our vehicles there. We drove through the streets of several little towns. I remember if we had to stop the convoy in town for anything, little kids would come up behind your vehicle and try to steal anything they could, even full gas cans. After about an hour, we arrived in Long Bien. We parked our vehicles and went into our tents to get ready for lunch. We had a pretty uneventful day and ended up playing cards, writing home and relaxing. Once the sun started to set, off to the club we went. We sat around drinking beer and socializing. Around 10:00 p.m. we walked back to the tent for the night. The next morning came and started off like any other morning. Woke up, got ready for breakfast and walked to the mess hall. Once we got back from breakfast and everyone was ready, we started playing cards again. Without warning, around 9:30a.m., the fire siren sounded. Without hesitation we all started gathering our gear and running up to the helipad and getting on our assigned helicopters. Lt. Kudla was the last one to get on the helicopter after running from TOC. Once he got on, the helicopters took off and started to get airborne. Like normal, I waited until we were airborne and our three helicopters were side by side, before I asked Lt. Kudla where we were going. We had two Cobra Gun Ships flying with us this morning. I knew that where ever we were going it was serious. I finally got Kudla’s attention and again asked where we were going. He looked at me and said, “I will tell you later”. I figured he had his reasons for not telling me now, so I didn’t think about it again. I could tell that we were flying west because we did not fly over any water. After about 15 minutes of flying, I received a radio call from Junior, in the helicopter to right of us. I could actually see Junior as he spoke. He said, “Bluetiger 30 delta, this is Bluetiger 31 delta, over!” Junior called to ask me where we were going. I normally would have already called him and Bluetiger 32 delta, to give them the location the Lieutenant would have given me. I responded back, “I don’t know!” Junior said, “Ask the Lieutenant!” I told him that I already did and he said he would tell me later. Junior said, “Don’t be a pussy, ask him again!” I turned to the Lieutenant and asked, “Where we going, Junior wants to know”. He again said that he would tell us later. I then told Junior on the radio that he said he would tell us later and then asked if Bluetiger 32 delta if he copied and he responded, “Affirmative!”
We flew and flew and flew. My legs and butt were falling asleep. It had to be about 2 hours that we had been flying. In about another half hour our helicopters started to get into formation and we started to descend. We circled a base camp and started to land. I wondered, what ever mission we were going on, was it canceled. We landed in a US Marine Corp base camp where we exited the helicopters. The Lieutenant instructed us to take off out equipment and place it in a big circle because we were going to eat lunch. Normally we would all eat together, but this day the Lieutenant ate with the Marine Officer’s instead of us. We ate our lunch and started to exit the Mess Hall. Once outside we started to smoke our cigarettes and talk as we all stood together. Junior asked me why I didn’t ask the Lieutenant where we were going. I explained that I did ask him not only once but twice and he told me he would tell us later. Junior said, "I am going to ask him just as soon as he comes out of the Mess Hall". I told him, "Go ahead smart ass, see if he will tell you instead of me." Some one said, we were probably called off this mission and I bet we are going back right after lunch.
Lt. Kudla finished his lunch and joined us outside. Junior then said, "Hey Lieutenant, we have been flying for hours, where are we going?" Kudla said, "You will find out soon enough!" Someone said, "we are going back home now, aren’t we?" Kudla said, "You will find out soon enough! Let’s go men, put on your gear and get back on the choppers!" Soon we loaded back on the helicopters as the pilots started up their engines. Soon we were airborne again and soon the Cobra gunships joined us. I could tell that we were flying west again because of where the sun was in the sky. This meant that we were not going back home, but continuing to where ever the mission was. My ass and legs were going to sleep again as the hours were going by. I was not one hundred percent sure, but I think we had been flying over three hours. All of a sudden, the door gunner, on my right, took his helmet off and leaned over and tapped me on the shoulder and said, as he was pointing down, "Guess where we are?" I looked at him and shrugged my shoulders and said, "I don’t know, it all looks like jungle to me!" He said, "We just crossed over the boarder into Cambodia." I yelled, "Are American supposed to be in Cambodia?"
After flying 10 more minutes, our helicopters began to get in line as we were coming in for a landing. The Cobra gun ships stayed high in the air. After we landed the pilots gave the thumbs off signal as we all jumped off the helicopters. The helicopters were back in the air and were soon leaving when Lt. Kudla gave us the circle up sign. Soon we were circled up around Kudla. He said, "As you probably have already guessed, we are in Cambodia, 10 miles inside the boarder to be exact, and I was ordered to not tell you guys until we were here in case someone wanted to go AWOL!" Someone said, "So we are here by ourselves? What about the Cobras who are flying way above us?" Kudla said, "They will stay up there for about 10 more minutes and then they will leave. We have 7 days to walk back 5 miles where we will set up a base camp. Once the Cobras leave, we will be on our own. We will be supplied with rations once while we are on the move, probably 3 days from now. Right now we need to get moving in case someone is watching us. Sergeant, let’s get ready to move out!" Quickly we got into formation and began moving out, down the hill from where we had been dropped off.
Soon, we began to get into jungle, not too thick at first, but the farther down the hill we went, the thicker it got. The next time I looked into the sky the Cobras were gone. We were truly alone, inside Cambodia. Before long we were setting up for the night. We were in a circle in tall Elephant grass. We took off our packs and started to get out our rations to eat. Kudla called the Sergeant’s over and they were talking as the rest of us ate dinner. Every time we went out, we had to carry 3 days worth of rations and 5 quarts of water. We never knew how long we would be out, but this time we knew we would be re-supplied on our third day. Night fell upon us. Just like any night patrol, two men would be awake throughout the night for one hour each. Two men across from each other would have a rope that they would hold. During their one hour watch, they would tug on the string to see if each other was awake. After their one hour they would wake the man on the left of him and pass the string to him. This would keep up until sunrise.
Day two, we were making our way closer to the stream that was at the bottom of the hill. Soon we were walking next to the stream. The whip antenna of my radio was slapping the underside of the leaves of the trees as we made our way down stream. We would stop often and be real still and see if we were being followed or check for boobie traps in front of us. One of the times we stopped, I felt something on the back of my neck. As I felt my neck I could feel something on it. Robert Rouch was behind me in the formation. I asked him, "What's on me." Rouch said, "A big leach!" He took out his insect repellent and quickly got the leach off of my neck. I knew what had happened. The leaches attached themselves to the underside of the leave from the trees and my whip antenna knocked one off and onto my neck it fell. Oh how I hate leaches! I could see other members of my platoon taking off leaches from their bodies.
We continued walking next to the stream all day. We moved slowly and at times we were right next to the water. SFC Phamatter radioed back to me to ask Kudla if we could fill up our canteens from the stream. Kudla used my radio and told Phamatter to tell everyone to put a water tablet in their canteen and shake well before they drink the water. One at a time everyone put their canteen into the stream and filled it with the water. As we made our way forward, one by one, it was finally my turn. As I knelt down and placed my canteen into the water, Rouch said, "Look, there is a body floating in the water!" As I looked up, on the other side of the stream, a bloated body was floating down stream. God, I said, I need to put 2 tablets in my canteen. Soon we were walking back walking down the trail. We set up again for the night.
Day three was here and we were on the move. We were moving a little quicker than normal. We had moved away from the stream and was more into the jungle. The platoon stopped and we all got down. Kudla used my radio and called Phamatter. He told SSGT Phamatter that when the drop occurred send four men out to retrieve our supplies. In about 10 minutes of waiting, an Air Force plane appeared in the sky and dropped a pallet with a parachute attached to it and it fell to the ground. We all watched as four men from Phamatter’s squad ran to the drop zone and retrieved the supplies. Once they returned to our location we quickly moved out without going through the supplies. We did this because if we saw the drop, so could the enemy. We walked about a thousand yards through the jungle before we stopped and went through our newly supplied goodies. There were enough LRRPS rations for everyone to have 4 days worth of food. There was a case of Coke and a case of Schlitz Beer. There was even sewing kits. The supplies were soon divided up and again we were on the move. We soon set up for the night.
Day four and we were on the move again. It was getting overcast and it was hot and muggy. We were going on four days without a shower. Another thing that was in our supplies were little bars of soap. Every man in the platoon was given a bar of soap. Around noon time, clouds came over the top of us and it began to rain on us. Someone asked the Lieutenant if it was alright if we took off our clothes and took a shower. Kudla gave his okay. We all stripped off our clothes and got out our bars of soap. As the rain drops hit our bodies we began to lather up. Everyone had soap all over their bodies. As quickly as the rain started, it quit. Everyone was left with soap on their bodies. I quickly looked down and there was a small puddle of water at my feet. I bent over and began scooping out the water in the puddle and tried to rinse off the soap. I was lucky because I was able to get most of the soap off. Now I was dirty from the mud that I put on my body. I only got a small rash, not like the majority of the platoon who had soap rashes on most of their bodies. When the men were getting dressed, no one put back on their boxer shorts, for those who had wore them.
Days 5 and 6 were humping days. We moved up and down hills and followed the stream for a while too. We finally came upon a large pond of water. It was located behind a Montagnard people’s village. Montagnard people were a very primitive type people that had water buffalo, chickens and pigs. They were a very self sufficient people. I was sure that the pond was used as water for the village and animals. After six days of humping through jungle with no shower, everybody came to the same conclusion. Let’s use the water to take a bath in. Lt. Kudla agreed with the platoon, and let 4 men at a time strip down, take a bar of soap and get into the water to take a bath. The first 4 men stayed in the water for about 10 minutes, washing important parts and splashing and playing. What a way to finish off 6 days of walking in the jungle. As the first 4 men started to come out of the water, it was apparent that there was something on their bodies. Not again, leaches were all over the lower portions of their bodies. All 4 men came up the bank and were helped by the other men to get the leaches off their bodies. Everybody after them, including myself, only went into the water up to their knees and washed up and squatted down into the water to rinse off. A few men still had leaches attached below their knees of their bodies. Still, it felt good to get the dirt, sweat and stink off of our bodies.
Once we were all clean, we got ready to move out. From the pond, we walked passed the Montagnard people’s village and soon started to climb up a very steep hill. It seemed like we walked for an hour before we got to the top of the hill. Little did we know that this would be our home for the next three months. It was named Fire Base Rob. Our mission would be to keep 10 miles of road open and clear of mines for when the United State Army would officially come into Cambodia. We were going to be joined by 1st and 2nd platoon as well as an Armor Cav unit. One platoon would drive 5 miles further into Cambodia as another platoon would drive 5 miles back down the road to the boarder keeping it open and safe as the third platoon would stay at Fire Base Rob. Each platoon would rotate everyday.
Trip to the hospital
We had been at Firebase Rob for about 3 weeks now. 1st and 2nd platoons had in fact joined us. Our platoon was getting ready to head out. We loaded up in our vehicles. I rode in the back of the Lieutenant’s jeep between the two PRC 50 radios. Kudla rode in the passenger's seat as PFC Elswick drove the jeep. We headed out, making our 5 mile trip farther into Cambodia. We drove 5 miles in the morning and had lunch before we started back down the same 5 miles. When we got to our last 5 miles, we ran into 2nd platoon who just finished their 5 mile trek back from the boarder. 2nd Platoon would now drive back to Firebase Rob as 1st platoon would take off tomorrow morning like we did this morning, and the road sweeping would continue. After the next day, it was our turn to drive back to Firebase Rob. We pulled in and started to go to eat at the chow hall at the top of the hill. It was pancakes and bacon with grapefruit. I was really hungry and this was my favorite breakfast. When we got our food, the pancakes were raw in the middle and the bacon was under cooked. The only thing eatable was the grapefruit. We all took grapefruit back to our area and started to play cards. We ate the grapefruit and drink our warm beer. Normally we would play cards until 10:00 a.m. or so, before we would crash and get some sleep. It was getting close to 10:00 a.m. and I was feeling pretty good after drinking about 6 beers and only having grapefruit in my stomach, when SSGT Phamatter came into our tent and said for all of us to put on our gear, we were going out because 2nd platoon had a large group of NVA pinned down and we were going to have to make a sweep and flush them out.
We were all in a panic and we trying to get ready as fast as we could. Someone was yelling, "Hurry, hurry!" I pulled my boots up, no socks. I put on my radio and I didn’t even have a shirt on. I already had my cut off pants on, so I put on my boonie hat and ran out and got into the jeep. We were on the move. We drove fast to 2nd Platoon’s location. We dismounted our jeeps and got on line on the road. The Lieutenant told us that we would make our way to the tree line and once beyond that point we were to take 3 steps and fire a small burst of fire until we engaged with the enemy. I was halfway drunk by now. Once inside the tree line, my guys began to fire small bursts as we moved through the trees. I was firing every third step I took. Before long I could see a mound on dirt, 30 feet in front of me, approximately 5 feet tall. I kept my eye on that mound as we got closer. All of a sudden, two NVA stood up from behind the mound of dirt and began firing at us. As I started to return fire, Robert Rouch, who was to my right, carrying the M-79 grenade launcher, shot directly at the mound. When the grenade hit the mount of wet dirt, dirt began to fly back at us. I was hit with what I believe was a dirt ball with sticks in it. This dirt ball hit me in the left eye and knocked me down and out. To the ground I went. I think I was knocked out for a few seconds. When I came to, I could not hear anything and started to open my eyes. All I could see was dust above me from the light shinning through the trees. I thought, I am dead and I must be in heaven. As the Dust cleared, I could see 3 of my Platoon members standing over me saying, "He is bleeding out of his eye." If I wasn’t already in shock, I was now. They quickly put me on a poncho and carried me back out to the road. Next, I was placed on a stretcher and put into an APC personnel carrier and was driven to a Mash Unit. I was carried in and placed on a table when a Doctor turned on a big bright light above me. He looked at my eye and said, "There is nothing I can do for this man." I thought, there it is, I lost the sight in my left eye. The next thing I knew was I was being transported by Medevac to the 3rd Field Hospital in Tan Son Nhut, Vietnam.
Two men carried my stretcher out to the waiting helicopter and placed me in it. Soon the helicopter took off. We flew for hours. I had two Medics attending to me all the way. The helicopter was starting to descend and I thought we were getting ready to land at the hospital but no. We had landed on a dirt road where an old Vietnamese man and his daughter were loaded onto the helicopter. With my one good eye, I could see the elderly man had serious injuries. I asked the two Medics what had happened to the man. They said that the man had stepped on a mine in his rice field and that we were taking him to the hospital too. The elderly man’s daughter was crying loudly, I could hear her cries over the loud slapping of the air on the rotor blades of the helicopter. I told the two Medics that I was alright and they needed to work on the old man and his injuries. They told me no, we work on injured Americans first, not Vietnamese. After being airborne for a few minutes, the old man drew his last breathes. He died in flight as his daughter cried as her head laid on his chest. He had succumbed to his injuries.
Soon the helicopter was landing at the 3rd Field Hospital in Tan Son Nhut. Two men with a wheelchair were waiting for me. The two Medics on the chopper helped me to my feet and helped me off. Into the wheelchair I was placed. The two Corp men wheeled me inside and onto an elevator. We went up to the second floor where we got off. I was rolled over to a desk for intake. I was asked several questions but my main concern was my stomach. The only thing I had all morning was beer and grapefruit. Being bounced around for the last few hours I didn’t know if I was hungry or was I getting sick. I told the intake nurse I needed something to eat. She said she would order me a lunch tray from the kitchen. It seemed like it took forever for the lunch tray to arrive. When it arrived I could see it was rice and beans. This was not one of my favorite meals. I took one bite and immediately my stomach turned and I was about ready to throw it up. I yelled to the nurse, I am getting sick, where is the bathroom? One of the Corp men took me to the bathroom not a minute too soon. Everything in my stomach came up. Beer, grapefruit and the rice and beans. When I was through, I was given a shower. It felt good to get cleaned up. Soon I was taken to my bed where I would live for the next two weeks.
As soon as my head hit the pillow I was out. 28 hours later, I woke up in my bed. With one eye still bandaged, I could see out of my other eye. I started to look around the room and could see other soldiers with eye injuries. I looked to the bunk next to me and a soldier was reading a magazine. He noticed that I was awake and said, "how you feeling? You have been asleep for 28 hours." I told him that I felt pretty good and that was the best sleep I had since arriving in country. I asked him what he was in the hospital for. I didn’t notice any eye injury. He told me that the second floor was for eye and VD patients. He was in the Navy and getting ready for his discharge home when he came down with a Venereal disease. The hospital could not cure him, so they were going to transfer him to the United States to a Military hospital to be treated and cured before they would release him from the Navy.
The next morning I was placed in a wheelchair and pushed to the elevator going down stairs to the eye clinic. Once in the room, the doctor turned off the lights and removed my eye patch. He turned on a big eye chart and asked me to read the letters from the top to the bottom. I could not even see the chart and no way could I read anything. I told the doctor, "I can’t see anything." No problem he said, and bandaged my left eye closed again. He explained to me that I had an abrasion to my cornea and it would take a while to heal. Back to my bed I was taken. Three days of being pushed down stairs to the Eye doctor’s office, I started to see light on the eye chart. Still couldn’t read anything, but I could see light. My eye was starting to heal. Once back at my bed, the nurse came over to talk to me. They had determined that I needed to get up and start moving around. I was given a job of taking plasma from the lab to the Triage Room. How hard could this be, taking a bag of blood from one room to another? I had to wait in the lab room and when they called my name, I walked up to the counter and would be handed a bag of plasma. They would instruct be as to which triage room I needed to take it to.
My name was called, and I received the bag of blood and was instructed to take it to triage room 3. Out the door I went and down the hall I walked until I saw triage room 3. I opened the door and started to walk in. All I could see was a table with medical staff all around it at the end of the room. Not bad for only having one eye to see with. As I walked towards the end of the room I could start to hear the screams of a soldier who was obviously fighting for his life as the doctors worked on him. I was met by a nurse that took the bag of plasma from my hand and told me, that is all soldier, you can leave now. I could not get out of the room fast enough. As I walked back to the lab, I was thinking, there is no way I can do this assignment. This was not part of my job description. I could still hear the poor soldier’s screams as I walked back to the lab. Once at the lab, I asked the Nurse if there was something else I could do, because I was not cut out for this type of work. She said she did not have any control over what assignments I was given and I would have to take it up with the nurse on my ward. 20 minutes had gone by before my name was called again. I was given 2 bags of plasma and told to take it to triage room #2. Down the hall I went. I arrived at room #2 and I opened the door. Before I could even get inside I could hear men screaming and crying. The nurse took the 2 bags from me before I could even take two steps inside. She then told me I could leave. As I closed the door behind me, I could still hear the screams coming from inside. All I could think of was my eye needed to heal so I could get the hell out of this hospital!
Soon, my first week of being in the hospital was over. I could start to see some letters on the eye chart but they were fuzzy and I could not see anything clear, but what an improvement. After another day of taking plasma into the triage rooms I was headed back to my ward. I was exhausted and wanted to lie down. Before I knew it, I was fast asleep. My Navy neighbor with VD was already transferred back to the States. My bunk was in the corner and now my neighbor was gone it was really quiet, just right for good sleep. The next thing I knew, I was being woken up. With my one good eye, I could see 3 beautiful women standing at the foot of my bed. There was an escort with them, and come to find out, they were "Playboy Bunnies". They were autographing their 8X12 glossy photos of themselves. I was asked my first name and all 3 gave me their photos. Soon they were gone to the next bunk to visit the next patient. What a great surprise, I had no idea we would be visited by real "Playboy Bunnies".
The 2nd week in the hospital was wearing thin on me. My eye was healing, but not as fast as I wanted it to. Carrying plasma was starting to get to me real bad. When I would go to sleep at night, I could hear the screams from those soldiers in the Triage Rooms. I was not sleeping well. At the end of the second week I knew I had to do something to get released out of the hospital. When I reported to the Eye Doctor, he had me hold the plastic spoon over my good eye and told me to read the eye chart with my injured eye. I held the plastic spoon in such a way that I could read the chart with my good eye. I started to read the letters on the chart. The doctor said, "That's amazing, you have regained your sight!" I will release you tomorrow back to your unit and in 6 weeks you need to have an eye exam for glasses. My "hell" was finally coming to an end! Tomorrow couldn't come fast enough for me.
The next morning I was released back to my Company area. Since everyone was in Cambodia, I had to get a ride from one of the helicopters heading up there. I was told to wait up on the helipad for the next helicopter heading out. I made my way to the helipad to wait. I saw another soldier sitting with his gear, waiting too. I walked up and introduced myself and asked, where you heading to? He introduced himself as Fred Burres, and he was new, and was being assigned to 3/17th Air Cav, 3rd Platoon. I told him that I was assigned to 3rd Platoon and was the Lieutenant’s Radio Man. I told him that I had just spent 2 weeks in the hospital and was just released and was on my way back to join them. Fred said that he was a medic and that the 3rd Platoon medic was heading home and he was coming to replace him. I told Fred I didn’t even know he was short to going home. I then asked Fred where he was from in the States. He said he was from California. I said, "So am I, where in California"? He replied, "Northern California". I said, "So am I, where in Northern California?" He responded by saying, "Sacramento, and you?" I said, "I am from Jackson, 45 miles away". Fred said, "I know where Jackson is, I used to date a girl from Jackson and we were almost engaged." I said, "What was her name, I might know her". He said, "Her name was Chris Nichols". I said, "No shit, I know Chris, she graduated a year before me at Jackson". What a small world! The next thing we knew a helicopter was landing and we boarded it and we on our way to Firebase Rob.