Hero driver Doan Minh Nguyet

(Baonghean) -Attaching his youth to the legendary Truong Son road from the early days of the American invasion of the North, to the Great Victory in the Spring of 1975, after being wounded twice and driving hundreds of thousands of kilometers safely with excellent cargo transportation, driver Doan Minh Nguyet was awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces. After completing his mission and returning, the former soldier made another miracle on the front line against hunger and poverty.

Born in 1932 in Kim Dong (Hung Yen), he thought he would be content with his job as an officer of the Institute of Design of the Ministry of Water Resources. But in 1963, when the war against the US was becoming increasingly fierce, he lowered his age to qualify for military service. After more than a year of studying at the Driving School of the Ministry of National Defense, he was assigned to the front line of Zone 4, beginning his years of attachment to Truong Son. His unit was responsible for transporting goods, weapons, and food from the Northern rear to the large Southern front through Laos.

The route he undertook was from Dong Loc Junction through Khe Giao, into Rao Boi, to Tan Ap for assembly and then crossed the Cha Lo “heavenly gate” to bring supplies to the Southern Laos Military Region in Xavanakhet, Atopoe (Laos) to assemble goods before being transported to the South. This was considered the focus of fierce American attacks. The vehicle load was only regulated at 2 tons, but with the motto of “increasing the load to advance” all for the battlefield, on many trips, he boldly loaded nearly 3 tons of goods onto the vehicle and still went smoothly.

Hero of the People's Armed Forces Doan Minh Nguyet

“In the rainy season of 1965, the West Truong Son road was muddy because of the torrential rains in the jungle. The road was slippery like grease, and above, American planes circled repeatedly to stop supply trips to the South. When the car was running through the Xavanakhet tunnel, my car was hit by a bomb. Blood flowed from my head, shoulders, and chest, soaking my shirt, but I don’t know where I got the strength to drive straight on the road with high mountains on one side and deep ravines on the other, and reached the emergency station. When I woke up, I realized that the car was still there, but I had 32 bomb fragments all over my body and was transferred to the Military Region 4 Hospital (located in Nam Dan district) for treatment,” Mr. Doan Minh Nguyet recalled. After more than a month of treatment, although he had not fully recovered, he missed the car and the road, so he asked to be discharged from the hospital and took the car to Laos.

During a cargo trip in 1968, when passing through the Dong Loc intersection, his vehicle received a bomb alert, so the forces had to take shelter. A bomb fragment punctured the gas tank of the Gaz66 he was driving. The fire threatened several tons of weapons in the truck bed. He quickly grabbed a blanket from the cabin mixed with mud in a nearby bomb crater and covered it with the gas tank. The vehicle and several tons of explosives were saved. After this trip, he was awarded the Third Class Military Exploit Medal and had his badge pinned on by Uncle Ho at the 1968 Northern Drivers' Congress.

With many achievements in combat, combat service, road holding, vehicle holding, in August 1970, the driver soldier Doan Minh Nguyet was awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces. Also in this year, the love between the driver and the beautiful, brave, resourceful Commune Captain and Deputy Secretary of the Nghi Phong Commune Party Committee (Nghi Loc) Nguyen Thi Tuat blossomed and bore fruit in a cozy, simple wedding ceremony during the fierce war days. From a driver soldier, at the end of 1974, he was appointed Company Commander to command the unit participating in the Dong Xuan Campaign (1974 - 1975) and the historic Ho Chi Minh Campaign, completely liberating the South and reunifying the country. After the war ended, Doan Minh Nguyet continued to work at the Logistics Department, Military Region 4 until 1983.

Retired, veteran driver Truong Son Doan Minh Nguyet, along with his wife and three children, invested in developing the restaurant and hotel business. Taking advantage of the coastal area (Thu Thuy ward, Cua Lo town), he invested in aquaculture with nearly 22,000 square meters of shrimp ponds, creating jobs for dozens of workers. With his achievements in combat, production, and economic development, veteran Doan Minh Nguyet was honored to attend the 2012 National Congress of Outstanding People with Revolutionary Contributions.

Article and photos: Duy Nam