Events

of

April 20, 1968

     We went from Hill 861 on patrol looking for VC mortars on our 2nd patrol after relieving the troops who had been under seiged at Khe Sanh. We had spotted mortars and had called in for an airstrike after taking a few incoming rounds. The air strike did one heck of a job in blasting the area that the spotter plane had dropped his flare. The only problem being the spotter pilot had missed by 500 yards. After the Jets flew away, their mortar group opened up on us. Michael Marshall Clayton was hit while trying to keep them pinned down with machine gun fire.

     LCPL Clayton was in a crater hole with his machine gun. When the mortar group returned his fire, he was hit along the left side of his body and head. Doc Tura and I both responded to him being wounded when we heard the call for “Corpsman up!”

     We got to him and decided immediately to move him back about 15 yards where we had more room in a 500 pound bomb crater hole in order to work on him. After we moved him and was attempting to keep his airway open and bandage him up, I happened to look up at the top of the crater. I saw a stunned marine standing there looking down at us. I immediately yelled at him to get down before he drew the enemy fire down on us. As I was saying this, I realized that it was too late because the mortars was encircling our position. Then a mortar landed about 5 yards to my left.

     We had 2 marines standing by waiting to transport LCPL Clayton once we had him stabilized. (We thought that we could save him even though his wounds were serious.) The standing by marines were hit down their backsides. Doc Tura was hit down his right side. I was hit down my left side. (I found out about the extent of their injuries after getting to Yokusha Naval Hospital.) I was the only one left conscious and was calling out for other corpsmen for help for us.

     I could only watch LCPL Clayton breath his last breath. Due to my wounds, I couldn’t get to the 2 marines or Doc Tura to check them out. Finally, (seemed like ages) other corpsmen came in and attempted to check me out first. I refused being treated since I didn’t know the status of the other 3. By the time I was treated I was crying because of my concern for them and I couldn’t stand not knowing how they were. (I knew I lost one but couldn’t bear the thought that I lost 3 others without being able to do my job.)(Go to reconciliation page for thoughts running through my mind.)

     LCPL Clayton was the 1st man I ever had to die in front of me in which I felt powerless. I couldn’t have handled it if they too died. Later on after the corpsmen arrived I had it confirmed that LCPL Clayton had died. Doc Tura’s injuries resulted in him losing about 18 inches of his intestines. One of the marines had to wear a leg brace on his leg (? which one, don’t know). The other marine’s injuries, I’m not sure I ever heard. My injuries were the worse of the lot which resulted in my eventually being medically discharged. The 2 marines and I were eventually sent back to Philadelphia Naval Hospital for recuperation. I don’t know whatever happened to Doc Tura after leaving the hospital at Yokusha.

     Over the years I had buried what had happened to me on that day deep in my mind. I have forgotten those 2 marines names. I only remembered Doc Tura’s name because of the unusual last name. Everytime that I started to think about what had happened I had flashbacks. Therefore, I tried not to think about the events of that day April 20, 1968 at about 11:30 am.

     One thing that does stick in my mind was that I was dependent on the marines for travel and if anything had happened to them I was on my own in enemy territory. I guess that I’ll always feel that way if I don’t have total control over my destiny. It has been hard for me over the years to trust and depend on some one else in the same way. I found myself not being so trusting of others in expecting them to do things on my level of expectations and getting upset easily.

     When I was being carried out of the field to where the medevac helicopters were going to pick up the wounded, this was reinforced by being abandoned by the 4 marines carrying me by an arm and leg. Not once, but 3 different times when we started to get incoming mortars again. The last time that I was abandoned out in the open, Lt. Courtney ordered those 4 marines “You go back and get Doc! He wouldn’t leave you out there and you’ll not leave him there either.”

      I’ve always wanted to find him someday to thank him personally for not letting them leave me there in the open. You see, within 30 seconds where I had been laying a mortar round landed where I had been. I saw him in the Aid Station but didn’t get a chance then to do so. I just found out recently from another corpsman on the Internet that he had been with Lt. Courtney when he got hit. I thought he meant April 20, 1968 and just let it go by. However in showing a friend the Vietnam Wall on the Internet where it was broken down by unit, I noticed under LCPL Clayton’s name, Lt. Courtney’s name as being listed KIA May 17,1968. Following is his panel id, etc.:

COURTNEY , ALLEN WESLEY JR

1LT - Marine Corps - Reserve

22 year old Married, Caucasian, Male

Born on 08/22/45

From HOUSTON, TEXAS

Length of service 2 years.

His tour of duty began on 10/05/67

Casualty was on 05/17/68

in QUANG TRI, SOUTH VIETNAM

HOSTILE, GROUND CASUALTY

OTHER EXPLOSIVE DEVICE

Body was recovered

Religion

PROTESTANT

Panel 62E - - Line 1

ETERNAL FLAME

Please turn on the music. Thank you.

Needless to say another haunting flashback occurred to me that night.

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