A beautiful view while camping in the mountains
Photo by Don Turner
1st Squad 1st Platoon, "A" Company 1/12 leaving LZ Christmas Hill in January 1969.
Shown are Don Turner, Dave Richards, Jerry Derrick, Bob Sewill, George Bussing, and Rick (Tennessee) Hallibroook


Ken is speaking The incident below was 18 days after my time In-Country.  All I remembered about "C" Co. was how often we had to back them up as they seemed to find the enemy with great regularity.  One of those "light packs, no bed roll" runs got me sweated up and I spent the coldest night of my life with Charlie Co.  Yeah, yeah, it's all a sweltering jungle but even at latitude 14.3 degrees North, it's cold at 4500 feet up with the wind blowing on a January night.

On the night of 15/16 May 1968 a squad from C Company 1/12 Infantry manning an observation post near Landing Zone Brillo, about 10km southwest of Polei Kleng, came under attack by a company of North Vietnamese regulars.  Then SP4 Albert Romine was one member of the squad.  The Associated Press reported the incident as follows:



SAIGON, May 16 (AP) - North Vietnamese troops advanced in darkness about 20 miles west of the city of Kontum today and opened fire with mortars, rocket-propelled grenades, flame throwers and small arms fire on a patrol base and an outpost of the United States 4th Infantry Division.  The defenders retaliated with mortars and artillery, and Air Force planes armed with rapid firing guns sprayed thousands of rounds into the enemy positions under the light of flares.

As dawn broke, the North Vietnamese pulled back, but an hour later they renewed the mortar attack.  Sporadic shelling continued during the day.

Initial reports said that four United States soldiers had been killed and 22 wounded.  Enemy casualties could not be determined.

The Medal of Honor
ROARK, ANUND C. (POSTHUMOUSLY)
THE MEDAL OF HONOR

A photo of Sergeant Roark

VIETNAM VETERAN'S MEMORIAL PANEL 61E LINE 18

RANK AND ORGANIZATION: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company C, 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division.

PLACE AND DATE: Kontum Province, Republic of Vietnam, 16 May 1968

ENTERED SERVICE AT: Los Angles, California

BORN: 17 February 1948, Vallejo, California

Loss Coordinates: 141913N 1080447E (YA962855)
CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.  SGT. Roark distinguished himself by extraordinary gallantry while serving with Company C.  SGT. Roark was the point squad leader of a small force which had the mission of rescuing 11 men in a hilltop observation post under heavy attack by a company size force approximately 1,000 meters from the battalion perimeter.  As lead elements of the relief force reached the besieged observation post, intense automatic weapons fire from enemy occupied bunkers halted their movement.  Without hesitation, SGT. Roark maneuvered his squad, repeatedly exposing himself to withering enemy fire to hurl grenades and direct the fire of his squad to gain fire superiority and cover the withdrawal of the outpost and evacuation of its casualties. Frustrated in their effort to overrun the position, the enemy swept the hilltop with small arms and volleys of grenades.  Seeing a grenade land in the midst of his men, SGT. Roark, with complete disregard for his safety, hurled himself upon the grenade, absorbing its blast with his body.  SGT. Roark's magnificent leadership and dauntless courage saved the lives of many of his comrades and were the inspiration for the successful relief of the outpost.  His actions which culminated in the supreme sacrifice of his life were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service, and reflect great credit on himself and the U.S. Army.

Once we were getting a few incoming mortar rounds while in a heavy bunker.  The LT said "Anybody got the balls to go up and fire that fifty?"  I had qualified expert on the M-60 and fired a fifty with a T & E device on it in the States.  I also knew the trick that they needed to be cocked twice.  I went out to the fifty and put it on fully automatic from the semi-auto it was on.  It did not occur to me that it was on semi-auto for a good reason.  I fired a few bursts and the gun was uncontrolable to me.  My bullets were coming closer to the troops I was "supporting" than the enenmy.  Too late I found out the gun would not return to semi-auto and I stopped firing.

I believe I could not have done what Sp5 Johnson did half as well.... and he survived.  I count at least seven and maybe a dozen actions which would have earned him a medal of some rank.

President Truman when he was asked if he was running for president again said: "I would rather have the Medal of Honor than the presidency."

We fought in the comradeship of giants.

JOHNSON, DWIGHT H.
THE MEDAL OF HONOR

RANK AND ORGANIZATION: Specialist Fifth Class, U.S. Army, Company B, 1st Battalion, 69th Armor, 4th Infantry Division.
PLACE AND DATE: Near Dak To, Kontum Province, Republic of Vietnam, 15, January 1968

ENTERED SERVICE AT: Detroit, Michigan

BORN: 7 May 1947, Detroit, Michigan

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.  SP/5 Johnson, a tank driver with Company B, was a member of a reaction force moving to aid other elements of his platoon, which was in heavy contact with a battalion size North Vietnamese force.  SP/5 Johnson's tank, upon reaching the point of contact, threw a track and became immobilized.  Realizing that he could do no more as a driver, he climbed out of the vehicle, armed only with a .45 caliber pistol.  Despite intense hostile fire, SP/5 Johnson killed several enemy soldiers before he had expended his ammunition.  Returning to his tank through a heavy volume of antitank rocket, small arms and automatic weapons fire, he obtained a sub machine gun with which to continue his fight against the advancing enemy.  Armed with this weapon, SP/5 Johnson again braved deadly enemy fire to return to the center of the ambush site where he courageously eliminated more of the determined foe.  Engaged in extremely close combat when the last of his ammunition was expended, he killed an enemy soldier with the stock end of his sub machine gun.  Now weaponless, SP/5 Johnson ignored the enemy fire around him, climbed into his platoon sergeant's tank, extricated a wounded crew member and carried him to an armored personnel carrier.  He then returned to the same tank and assisted in firing the main gun until it jammed.  In a magnificent display of courage, SP/5 Johnson exited the tank and again armed only with a .45 caliber pistol, engaged several North Vietnamese troops in close proximity to the vehicle.  Fighting his way through devastating fire and remounting his own immobilized tank, he remained fully exposed to the enemy as he bravely and skillfully engaged them with the tank's externally mounted .50 caliber machine gun; where he remained until the situation was brought under control.  SP/5 Johnson's profound concern for his fellow soldiers, at the risk of his live above and beyond the call of duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the U.S. Army.
DWIGHT H. JOHNSON



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