Herd Bathes in Monsoon Floods

   LZ ENGLISH - Heavy rains and slashing winds during the last part of October left Soldiers of the 173d stranded everywhere - on rooftops, rafts, tops of vehicles, mountain peaks and even in trees.
   The November Rangers, who had been operating a radio-relay team West of LZ English on Hill 606, were actually stranded for several days in a haze of clouds. Unable to go into the lowlands because of the flooded conditions, the Rangers were finally rescued by Casper Aviation Platoon.
   As a result of the inclement weather, a Reconaissance Team, Wildcat 2, was not resupplied for several days. Ragged and worn, the team was finally extracted from the Crow's Foot in Northeastern Binh Dinh Province on October 31.
   Twenty-one Soldiers of D Co, 2d Bn, were forced to take refuge in tops of trees from the fast rising Kim Son River in eastern Hoai An District. Stranded from midnight to the dawning hours of Nov 1, the men were lifted out by two Casper "Slicks" utilizing rope ladders.
   Three Soldiers, on a rescue mission to recover another vehicle, became stranded atop their wrecker south of LZ English on Highway 1. Sniper fire and rising water kept them marooned for two hours before help could arrive.
   In other rescue missions by Casper during the torrential monsoon rains, three Soldiers were lifted from a rooftop near Bong Son, eight were pulled out of a boat on Highway 1 after their vehicle had broken down and three more were rescued from an isle near Lo Dieu after failing to reach their destination on foot.
   In view of the remarkable efforts of the pilots and crews of Casper Platoon despite the lack of visibility and poor cornmunications, awards and decorations are pending.

   LZ ENGLISH - Water, water every where and not a dry sock in sight....   So goes the lament of the Sky Soldiers of the 173d Abn Bde, as the Northeast monsoon inundates Northern Binh Dinh Province.
   All troopers agree if a book entitled 'How to Get Along With the Monsoon and Like it' were to hit the Stars and Stripes bookstand it would replace Playboy on top of the Sky Soldier best seller list.
   But since no budding, bent-on-a-buck author wants to take his chance with weather in the wilds, Paratroopers of the 173d have called on a GI's best friend .... 'Improvisation.'
  An apparent Scotch-ancestored Platoon Sergeant at LZ North English has been collecting empty C-ration boxes for the past month and has a bumper supply of sturdy cardboard on hand.
   An inquisitive young trooper asked the grizzled veteran, serving his third tour in 'Nam, about the hair-brained hoarding. "Listen kid. This is the third Monsoon I have gone through and I ain't gonna get any wetter than I have to. If you notice, I have a can of diesel fuel out there with that stack of empty "C's" and if I soak each hunk of cardboard with the diesel, I got a stack of covering material that'll shed water better than a duck wearin' a poncho.   "Don't laugh, troop. When the Big Daddy Rain swoops in you'll be trying to swipe some of this stuff to keep your hootch front turning into a swimmin' hole," the Sergeant said, shooting a quick look at the clouding sky.
  Sandbag production rose sharply as the monsoon approached LZ Uplift.
   A "Newk" (new trooper in 'Nam) questioned some of his buddies about all feverish sack-filling activity. "You ever try to fill sandbags in the rain and then have to build with these things? They weigh an extra ton," was the short reply of a monsoon veteran, handing the questioner a shovel.
   Long before the skies started to take on the forbidding monsoon look, rain jackets, pants and ponchos began disappearing. A line trooper who is working on his third extension in the war zone quipped, "any boonie troop worth his hash marks will have two extra ponchos and a complete extra rain outfit stashed away...long before the Newks realize just what Mr. Monsoon can do to a GI's instinct to keep dry."
   There's always some guy who looks to the downpour with a grin on his face and seems to pop into life as soon as the mud is no longer mud, but the bottom of a monsoon pond. One of the grinners was bugging a harassed mail clerk concerning some packages he was expecting from the World. "What the hell is so important about those packages?" asked the mail clerk as the trooper was struggling out of the mail room loaded with his haul. Dropping the booty on the floor, the trooper popped open a box, out rolld a face mask and flippers. "I'm not letting an this rain bother me," beamed the trooper. "I'm not fighting it- I'm joining it."
   One mailman at an isolated Firebase is also happy that the wait is over for a TV-commercial believer in his outfit. The boob tube devotee ordered a case of the latest 'Stay Dry' underarm deodorant and is convinced if he sprays it on bed, bunker and jungle fatigues he will not only stay dry as the Mojave in July but will also forestall the need to take cold showers in chilly monsoons.
   Then there's the one about the Sergeant Major who doesn't mind the rain in his well fortified and water-proofed bungalow. "I leave a bucket outside my door every night and I have enough clean water to wash the floor, mix with my scotch and heat on my stove for the morning shave and coffee. This monsoon really isn't that bad."
   In reply, a soaked to the scivvies trooper just in from a week in the jungle answered, "Hell, if I had all you got going for you, Sergeant Major, I wouldn't care if it snowed green tracers." "Yea," grumbled his buddy, "and I'd like to catch that birdbrain who enjoys singing 'Rain Drops Keep Falling on my Head.' Trooper number three summed it up "That 'Just Walking in the Rain' jazz don't make it either."

   Each Thanksgiving Day, grateful Americans pause to give thanks for our nation's heritage of liberty and prosperity. On this day we pause from our efforts to thank the Almighty for his gift of strength and for helping us to make the progress we have made.
   We also give thanks that as free men we are privileged to give a measure of ourselves in aiding the Vietnamese people in their struggle for their liberty and prosperity.
   On Thanksgiving Day, 1970 as we return thanks to our Maker for the heritage that is ours, let us rededicate ourselves to the efforts we are making to preserve that heritage.
E.R. OCHS, Brigadier General, USA Commanding

   LZ ENGLISH - A recently completed overhaul of the entire telephone complex system on LZ English has vastly improved communications throughout the LZ, according to Major Garner D. Snuffer, Brigade Signal Officer.
   "Direct telephone extentions to key personnel in the 2d Bn, 503d Inf and 3d Bn, 319th Arty is another recent achievement," said Snuffer.
   In the process of rehabilitating the entire telephone system on LZ English, approximately 1200 pairs of cable were spliced, repaired or re-routed by the 534th and 539th Signal Companies.
   Telephone communication on LZ Uplift is also expected to improve as re-routing of the system nears completion.
   A new system, which allows all complaints to be directly submitted to the signal, coordinator, has also been initiated, according to Snuffer. "By coordinating directly with the unit we are able to get the circuits back into operation much faster," said Snuffer. Complaints are received by Sgt Lloyd Covington at the Brigade Signal office.

   LZ UPLIFT - Nobody likes to fill sandbags, especially a Paratrooper. Filling sandbags is just one of these necessary military details that gets under a guy's craw. But when a unit is gifted 30,000 filled bags it's like manna from heaven.
   A unit of the 4th Infantry Division was staying temporarily at LZ Uplift, but still had to fill sandbags ...about 30,000 of 'em. Although necessary as protection from VC mortars, the knowledge that they would be moving out soon, made the task seem like work.
   Several men from the "Herd" would stand around and discuss the project. Somebody, nobody seems to know who, came up with the bright idea, "instead of emptying those sandbags when you move out, why not trade them, full, to us for new empty ones." The 4th Infantry bought the idea. When the Ivy Men left they didn't have to go to the trouble of dumping and rebundling the bags.
   The troopers from the 173d didn't let on, but they had alot of plans for those full sandbags....most of them spelled less work and more protection. The Tactical Operations Center (TOC) needed sandbags for the roof... a new stand-down hooch needed sandbags for protection... bunkers had to be built... all this work fell to the 173d Engineers and 3d Bn, but not the filling of sandbags.
   When the 4th moved out, leaving their sandbags behind, the Paratroopers took them over. They loaded them on trucks hauled them where they belonged, and started stacking protection.
   Sgt Charles Ridgedell of Amite La, and the 173d Engineers summed up the work-saving swap, "I think we really got over. Those sandbags saved a lot of work. Hell, we put 3,000 on the roof of the stand-down hooch alone, and didn't even dent the supply."
Thanks, Ivy sandbag fillers.

   LZ UPLIFT - It says 'Sky Pilot' on his helmet, the lyrics of the song go "How high can you fly?" On a routine mission, carrying Vietnamese civilians to Bong Son Hospital, WO1 Don Cook Pilot of Uplift's DustOff 12, glanced at newcomer Charles F. Smith and said over the ship's radio, "Change your direction occaisionally. It makes it hard for Charles to get a shot at you." He knows first hand about 'Charles', since May his ship has been downed twice by enemy fire.
   The term 'DustOff' itself refers only to ships with a Red Cross on a white background. Unlike MedEvac choppers, whose cross is on an O.D. background, the Herd's bird sacrifices the security of two M-60 machine guns and Gunners for space and travels light. In the CYA department, DustOff's carry only one M-l6 and one M-79. The Crew Chief and Medic carry .38 cal government issue revolvers.
   You'd best believe they're good too. Ask an ol' time Boonie Rat if he's ever seen the action too thick or the weather too bad to get an injured man extracted. If he answers anything but "No", he'll probably start "I remember once...we had a typhoon." As for the action, it hasn't been too thick yet.
   The night of October 24th an urgent call was received by DustOff One-Two. A Squad of ARVN'S had made contact and required extraction of one of their wounded Soldiers. Weather conditions; ceiling 700 to 800 feet, no horizon, moderate to heavy rains, almost impossible weather for rotary winged aircraft.
   WO1 Cook elected to give it a try. With near zero visibility, he manuevered the craft slowly through the fog, aided somewhat by mortar illumination that was fired into the haze along his route. Thirty minutes of flying time were logged before WO1 Cook decided to try another course. The weather didn't break, but this time One-Two was successful, extracted the wounded man and crept back to Uplift.
   The next day another urgent call one of the 17th Cav's drivers was wounded when his element made contact in 506 valley. DustOff One-Two rushed the man to the aid station. Total elapsed time from Medic's call to arrival at 1st Bn aid station- seven minutes. In less than 24 hours another urgent call came from Co C, 3d Bn, 503d Inf. Their Point element had hit a booby-trap and needed a DustOff. The job was again done in a little less than seven minutes.
   These were the highlights of three 'days' operation of DustOff One-Two. It takes longer than that before the legand of DustOff becomes reality for those who use it, probably a whole tour, but it means a lot to the men in the field. Whey know they've got the best and when medical help is needed beyond the capacity of the field Medic, they know it'll be there fast.
   On October 26, at 1920 hours, Dustoff 12 flew it's last mission. A call from FireBase Washington requested DustOff for one urgent litter patient. One-Two again elected to try. Arriving at the Firebase, One-Two found Washington covered with dense fog and was unable to land on their first pass. Circling for another pass, the DustOff chopper crashed, killing Pilot and Crew. This untimely incident vividly substantiates the reputation of DustOff and of men like WO1 Donald Cook, WO1 Charles F. Smith, Sp4 Dennis Reese and Pfc Karl Reineccius, who daily risked their lives that others might live.

   LZ ENGLISH - When the weather picture changed recently in Binh Dinh Province, the roads got washed out or flooded, giving the Brigade S-4 the slight problem of supplying the 'Herd' with rations. "Usually we are supplied rations daily that are transported by a convoy," said Cpt Robert Mortis, assistant Brigade S4. "When the roads get washed out, we get air supplied from Qui Nhon."
  During the weekend of Oct 31, when the conditions became extremely poor, a C-130 transport plane flew in daily with Class A rations and fuel. Cpt Mortis explained only supplies necessary for the Brigade operations are moved during the inclement weather conditions. Others are considered administrative holds.

   LZ NORTH ENGLISH - Captain Roger C. Bond, a Doctor assigned to Company B Medical, 173d Support Battalion, always puts in a hard days work- sometimes a harder nights work.
   Bond had just settled down the other night for a well deserved rest after another long day at the North English Aid Station, he was very tired. Slumbering in drowsy rememberances of the day, Bond became suddenly aware of a knock on the door.
   "Sir, an ARVN Artilleryman has just brought in his wife, who is about to deliver her third child," a Medical Aidman announced. "He would like a 'DustOff' to take her to the Province Hospital in Bong Son." Captain Bond hurriedly put on his clothes and rushed to the aid station. Deciding that the baby would not arrive for several hours, Cpt Bond advised the expectant father to take his wife home and wait.
   Returning to his "hootch" for that much needed sleep, Bond quickly dozed off again. A resounding thud on the door awakened Bond for the second time. "The father-to-be has returned," said Sgt First Class Charlie Graham, "and needs assistance again at his Artillery bunker."
   Captain Bond glanced at his watch Seeing that it was 0100, he thought of the days at medical school and of that often asked question, "Why are babies always born in the middle of the night?" Captain Bond joined Sgt Graham at the aid station where the equipment and jeep were ready for another jaunt into the night. Arriving at the bunker, the medical men made necessary preparations and soon a new member of the family, 'Miss Geronimo' arrived. "Mamasan number one, Babysan number one," Captain Bond told the family and friends of the new mother. The medical team returned to the aid station, seeming relieved- but not quite so sure this time their night was over.

   LZ ENGLISH - A Soldier from Company A, 3d Bn, 503d Inf, has been selected as November's Sky Soldier of the Month.   Sp4 Roscoe M. Heyman III, 21 year old Soldier from Menard, Tex, won the distinction in stiff competition over selected 'Sky Soldiers' throughout the Brigade.
   A Fire Team Leader in the 1st Plt, Specialist Heyman, in winning the honor, demonstrated exceptional aptitudes in such areas as military courtesy and discipline, oral expression and versatility, knowledge of current events and world affairs, and the understanding of weapons and small unit tactics.
   Heyman completed basic training at Ft Ord, Calif, and attended Special Forces Training at Ft Bragg, NC, before being assigned here in May of 1970. In addition to being awarded a plaque and letter of commendation from the Commanding General, Heyman will also receive the Army Commendation Medal, a promotion in rank to grade E5, a tailor made suit and a $50 U.S. Savings Bond.

   LZ NORTH ENGLISH — Trudging two miles south of Lo Dieu Beach into thickly jungled mountains after a 48-hour standown, Co D, 4th Bn, 503d Inf, broke up a Viet Cong basecamp and killed three ememy about 50 miles north of Qui Nhon on October 29.
   The Paratoopers, humping back to their inland basecamp under Typhoon Kate's strong winds and driving rain, were stopped short by alert Company Pointmen, Sp4's Kenneth T. Perry and Patrick M. Glowacki.
   "As we were nearing the end of our route Perry and Glowacki spotted a female, who dashed back toward the mountains when she saw them," reported 1st Platoon Leader Lee C. Tashjian. "The Pointmen fired warning shots but she kept right on going. About that time, the Viet Cong opened up with automatic fire, pinning us down until we fired and manuevered against a half dozen of them, forcing them onto the beach."
   "Just like a World War II movie," exclaimed Sp4 Robert E. Benjamin, Miami, Fla. "Getting into a firefight with the VC on the sand is like the old days, fighting in open land, where you can see a target!"
   Minutes after the chase, the fleeing Cong split into individual defense groups but the Pointmen were hot on their trail. One VC was engaged and zapped in a cave complex by Perry and Glowacki. Perry, from Galena Ga, chased another into a cave complex about 500 feet back into the mountains, while Glowacki, from Hantranok Mich, fired up another in a rock formation.
   After a thorough search of the initial contact area, the Company found rucksacks, Chicom grenades, living quarters, and bunkers in the thick brush. "Most likely a basecamp, maybe even a propaganda center for the Viet Cong, because we found a substantial amount of papers, written in English, urging Gls to refuse to fight in Viet Nam," stated the Company Commander, Cpt Harry Klein from Kalamazoo Mich.

   When Fred A. Sullivan arrived in Vietnam in November 1969, he already knew how to fight. He just had to change his style a little.
   Chief Warrant Officer Sullivan a native of Savannah Ga, who flies Cobra Gunships for the 17th Combat Aviation Group's Troop C, 7th Squadron, 17th Air Cavalry in support of the 173d Avn Bde, earned his keep as a professional boxer before entering the Army in 1968.
   "When I was drafted," Sullivan recalled, "I was in Australia training for a fight with Bob Dunlap, the eighth-ranked light heavyweight in the world. I was a bit shocked to receive my notice." Before being called to service he had fought his way to the number 10 spot in the light heavyweight world, leaving such notables as George Chuvalo and Dunlap sprawling in his wake, Sullivan said.
   Sullivan is presently uncertain about his future. "I am almost sure, though, that I won't return to boxing" he admitted. "I'm getting a little age on me now, and I doubt I could get back in shape. Besides, I enjoy flying an awful lot."
   Whatever Sullivan decides to do, whether on the battlefield, in the ring, he'll be a winner. While flying for the 'Ruthless Riders' and the 173d he has been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with 'V' device. He managed to accrue an enviable won-lost record as a pro, with his only major setback coming at the hands of Robert Foster, the current undefeated world light heavyweight champion. Sullivan dropped a ten round decision to the then up and coming Foster in a 1964 Washington, DC bout.

   LZ ENGLISH - They call them the "Night Lighters" and at times the illumination crew. They are responsible for lighting the area for the bunker guards and the patrol teams.
   The crew is made up of Sgt William Powers, Boston; Sp4 Mike Yellovich, Virginia, Mn; and Sp4 Dale Cosgray Columbus, Ohio. They are all members of Co E, 2d Bn, 503d Inf. Their Company is permanently in charge of illumination for Landing Zone English, a major Base Camp and home of the 'Herd'.
   They use 8lmm mortars to fire the illumination rounds. There is a direct line with the command bunker, and if any guard team wants illumination of the area in front of them, they have to request it from the command bunker which in turn calls the illumination crew. Once the bunker number comes down, and the necessary information is given, the night lighters go into the action. They have prepared data on each one of the bunkers, and they utilize that data on the mortar. Next, the tube is placed into the desired position, the charges and the fuse are cut and there comes light which brightens the whole area and at times makes it look like Disneyland.
   Sgt Powers, leader of the crew, says they fire an average of three missions a night. There are nights when they fire all night and nights when they don't fire at all.

  LZ ENGLISH - "Our mission, of providing security for the people in northern Binh Dinh Province has been a real success," said a veteran 172d Abn Bde Officer who has been operating in the area for nearly two years.
   Captain WR Lipke Chief of the 'Order of Battle' section in the 173d Military Intelligence Detachment, who has been with the detachment since January 1969, recalls the time it was unsafe to even go outside the gate. That was prior to the 173d's involvement in the pacification program when the enemy roamed at will throughout the area.
   The Richland Wash, native said after the 173d joined the Government of Vietnam pacification program in April, 1969, there was a sharp increase of the number of captured enemy and the number of enemy killed.   "I firmly believe that Vietnamization is working in Binh Dinh and that the ARVN's will be strong enough when we leave," Cpt Lipke concluded.
   The successful operations of the "Sky Soldiers" forced the hardcore Viet Cong guerrillas to flee into the rugged mountains adjacent to the lowlands, where they stayed while other who were sympathetic to the Viet Cong continued their farming occupation.
   Cpt Lipke said the most significant factor since the task of supporting pacification in Binh Dinh fell on the 173d was the coming of the 3d NVA Division to the area in September 1969. Their mission was to assist the local VC forces, who pleaded for their help, with the intentions of regaining the control of the people in the area.
   While the 3d Division was here there were three major battles that crippled the enemy forces, according to Cpt Lipke. He named the November 1969 Paratrooper contact with the 2d Regiment of the Division, during which the "Sky Soldiers" killed some 150 Reds and wounded another 150. The remainder of the Regiment was chased by the Troopers through November and December 1969 and the 2d Regiment plans for a Tet offensive was nullified.
   The second major incident took place in January and February this year when the 22d Regiment of the 3d NVA Division located at the time in Tam Quan Mountains, was whipped by elements of the 173d. The Airborne Troopers had continous contact with the Reds on Hill 474, where they killed 150 Communists and wounded some 200. This was another important victory against the enemy that curtailed the enemy's plans for the Tet Offensive.
   The third major operation took place in April and May when the remainder of the 2d NVA Regiment went to Phu My District, where the 173d Troopers and elements of the 22d ARVN Division killed 200 and wounded an equal number of the enemy.
   Many of the NVA Regulars realize their leaders have told them outright lies concerning the situation in the Republic of Vietnam. During their training and indoctrination in North Vietnam they were told that they would be welcomed with open arms. Besides low morale, the enemy often faces shortage of food, clothing and supplies. He explained most of the enemy are tired of fighting the war against their southern neighbors and that they really want to go back to North Vietnam.

  LZ UPLIFT - A Platoon of 3d Bn, 503d Inf, has been nickle and diming the VC/NVA to death.
No big contacts ... no large battles and body counts.
   Recent operations have shown this line of tactics to be extremely fruitful in protecting the people of Hoai An District from Red terrorist and tax collectors. Operating in small groups, the VC/NVA attempt to sneak down from the hills and gather rice from the Vietnamese people living in the fertile valley surrounding Fire Base Orange.
   Operating in equally small elements is 2d Plt, B Co. Recent operations have necessitated their being broken into small ambush groups. The many small squads of men "saturate" an area. Anything moving through that area will be detected by the men laying silently in wait. Small units, individual action, initiative and surprise are the essential ingredients to the success experienced by the Paratroopers. The VC are afraid to move. By day they risk detection by helicopters and other aircraft that seem to endlessly patrol the skies. At night they run the risk of walking into the kill zone of a carefully prepared ambush.
   The Paratroopers are experts at setting up successful ambushes. A recently blown ambush drove the fleeing VC into the kill zone of another ambush. The surviving Reds barely excaped being caught in a third one.
   Sgt Tim Blandon of Pottsville Ky, was in an ambush position, waiting. His squad was on ambush; as they had been for the several nights recently. This night patience was to be rewarded. Sgt Mitch Barnes of Nashville Tenn, heard movement to his front. Barnes squeezed the detonator that exploded the Claymore mines spraying the inky darkness with a deadly hail of steel ball bearings. Everyone in the squad let their rifles lay unused and threw grenades. The explosions shattered the night. Singing steel filled the air. The communists were at a loss, they couldn't find a target to fire at. There were no revealing muzzle flashes from rifles to inform on the Americans just the eye searing explosions blossoming in their midst. The Reds abandoned any attempt to stay and fight. They grabbed any of their wounded who were handy and ran, leaving one body behind.
   In their frantic escape they ran into the middle of another group of GI's. An ambush, under the command of Plt Sgt Lawrence Via, of Charleston, W.Va, wasn't quite prepared for them. They had set the kill zone up so that it faced away from the friendly positions near them. Unable to use their Claymores, the Paratroopers resorted to their rifles. Sgt Charles Laber of Billings Montana, alerted his buddies to the danger with a rebel yell. Unfortunately, his M-16 jammed before he could do any damage to the startled VC. Via was armed with an M-79 grenade launcher. He couldn't fire the high explosive weapon for fear of wounding his own men.
   In the jungle, quick reflexes are a must. A man has to act naturally ands fast to survive. Sp4 Lionel Pennethy of Oklahoma City proved this. He woke up firing. He had been sleeping sitting up with his rifle laying, ready in his lap. At the sounds of firing, which stopped immediately because of jamming, Pennethy was putting down a deadly stream of fire. Again the VC fled, leaving another body behind.
   Paratroopers from another ambush position heard them crashing through the brush. The VC were too far away for the GI's to stage a successful engagement the third time, but the VC didn't care by then. All they wanted to do was get out of the valley they thought would provide them with rice.
   So it goes night after night. The Paratroopers are there waiting. In the rain, or in the tropical moonlight they are ready. The VC know they are there. They don't know exactly where, nor will they; until it's too late. You've got to be awful hungry to run those odds.

   LZ ENGLISH - The war has reached a stage now where it can no longer be won by bullets alone. The 173d has beaten the VC/NVA on every battlefield. The common people- the villager, the farmer, the small hamlet dweller must be convinced that we are their friends and we're here to help them.

   Pacification is the name that has been given to this attempt to befriend the people. The building of schools, hospitals, churches, bridges, roads and many other construction projects, as well as medcaps and technical training projects are all parts of this pacification program.

     The most unique thing about this program is that GI's do little of the work in the construction involved. The Army supplies much of the materials that can't be attained by the villagers, gives them technical assistance, then stands back and watches the villagers go to work. The people appreciate this kind of help and often times it speaks much louder than bullets in turning VC into friendlies. The people pass the word that the GI's are there to help and the people wait to see if it's true; but they don't stand around for long. When they find that the Americans mean what they say about the much needed projects they are usually more than eager to lend a hand. More often than not they'll do all the work themselves. This is the meaning of 'self-help.' We'll get the project started and let them take over and do the majority of the work, while we supply materials and technical assistance.

     Because the Vietnamese put so much into the construction of these projects, they can take great pride in the finished product. It was their labor and time which made the project come to life and because of that fact they will be much more willing to defend if need be.
   Schools, hospitals, churches, bridges, roads are all where pacification and self-help are at and the 'Herd' is what's making it happen.

   BONG SON - A few days ago the Trung Luong village in northern Binh Dinh Province was a community of 600 happy Montagnard men, women and children. Dogs and chickens were wandering around the community located on the low grounds near the Song Lai Giang River, known to the Troopers of the 173d as the Bong Son River. Children ran at the approach of strangers, bare-breasted girls giggled timidly and adults smiled amiably from their hootches in the community about two miles southwest of the city of Bong Son.
   Heavy northeast monsoon rains swelled the Bong Son River over its banks and flooded their village during the last week end in October compelling the villagers to move to the higher grounds. The river washed away all their homes and most of their personal belongings. In the plight to save their lives, the Montagnards left the community on foot and moved near Fire Base Two Bits, about a mile and a half north of the river.
   The Montagnard community originally came from the An Lao Valley area; northwest of LZ English, where they were threatened by the Viet Cong terrorists, and then they moved to the outskirts of Bong Son. Paratroopers of 2d Bn, 503d Inf, came to their assistance. The Battalion provided food, clothing and building material for the Montagnards who had lived off the land as farmers by raising a few head of cattle and chickens. Plans are underway for rebuilding the Montagnard community, according to 1st Lt Joseph Brand, of Birmingham Ala, the Battalion S-5.

9/13/2001

Many Thanks to Larry Tester, E/17th Cav, November Rangers, who Contributed This Issue

FIRE BASE 173 is an authorized Army newspaper published biweekly by the 173d Airborne Brigade for military personnel.

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