Part V: Twice a Heroic Ferry - Two Heroic Individuals - One Person Left
There is a statistic that anyone who has ever lived in Vinh - Ben Thuy, even if they only passed through Ben Thuy ferry during the war against America, cannot ignore: "From 1965 to 1968, in 2,912 bombing raids by aircraft and naval artillery, Ben Thuy ferry was hit by 11,377 rockets, bombs, and artillery of all kinds.
There is a statistic that anyone who has ever lived in Vinh - Ben Thuy, even if they only passed through Ben Thuy ferry during the war against America, cannot ignore: "From 1965 to 1968, in 2,912 bombing raids by aircraft and naval artillery, Ben Thuy ferry was hit by 11,377 rockets, bombs, and artillery of all kinds.
In particular, in the nine months of 1972, in just 317 battles, there were 13,253 bombs and artillery shells rained down on the “Fire Throat of Ben Thuy”. What did those numbers tell us? The number of battles was less than one compared to four years, the number of bombs, rockets, and artillery shells was more, meaning the fierceness of each battle was superior. I remember a strange story with our soldiers in the battlefield. In the command bunker of the Company Commander, there was always a battle alarm bell.
If it is a railway sleeper or a regular piece of iron, when the alarm is sounded (three times in a row), the command dog will run from the shed to look. If it is a small bomb hanging as a gong, when the alarm is sounded, it will howl repeatedly, its tail down in fear, it will crawl into the bunker. When John Sn attacked (US President John Sn ordered the first bombing of the North), the dog was like that every time.
But when President Nixon ordered the second bombing, after only a few battles, when the gong was rung, the dog howled, rushed deep into the bunker, lay face down, face up, mouth open, eyes blank with fear. Only then did we know how powerful the life force of intelligent animals and humans is hidden in their fleshy shells.
We still say to each other: “Nich Son fought differently than Johnson” (Speaking in short because the war power in the US is concentrated in the President). Johnson escalated the war in the North. Escalating step by step, then stopping to flex the muscles of North Vietnam. This way of fighting against the weak-hearted community seems advantageous, but when facing Vietnam – a resilient nation that has defeated many hegemonic invaders, it turns out to be a bad strategy, the opponent grasps the “weakness” and prepares forces to deliver fatal blows.
Nixon learned from his experience to fight fiercely from the beginning, only the extremely dangerous "leapfrog" moves. On the night of April 6, 1972, my company received orders to leave Quyet mountain to defend Ho bridge, Phu bridge, Cay bridge, Nghen bridge, Gia bridge, Ha Tinh, the second bombing had just begun a few days ago. On the night of April 10, 1972, the US sent B52 strategic aircraft to bomb Vinh - Ben Thuy (in the four years of the first bombing), B52 aircraft only bombed Vinh Linh and Mu Gia pass, Quang Binh (the border gate to Laos on Truong Son road). I would like to write according to the archived documents provided by the director of Nghe An library:
At 02:55 on April 10, 1972, while people were sleeping, the US mobilized 55 planes, including 09 B52 planes, to suddenly bomb Vinh - Ben Thuy. 09 B52 planes divided into 03 groups, every 02 minutes, the giant B52 Flying Fortress bombed slowly, heavily bombed an area nearly six kilometers long and nearly one kilometer wide. Bombs covered the communes of Hung Hoa, Hung Dong, Nghi Phu, Ward 05 (currently Ben Thuy and Trung Do wards) and Ben Thuy ferry. The bomb density was dense, each block was 05 to 10 meters apart, causing heavy casualties, 209 civilians were hit by bombs, of which 85 people died, 109 people were injured. Hung Hoa commune had 46 people killed. In Phong Khanh hamlet, Mr. Chat Ninh's family had 8 people thrown into the pond by a bomb and died. In Mr. Thap's family, a mother, husband, wife and three children died (one child was in the army). In Mr. Ho Phuc's family, four of five people died.
On May 5, 1972, Vinh City Party Committee issued Resolution No. 03, which stated: “On the night of April 10, 1972, the enemy used 63 fighter planes, including 9 B52 planes, to suddenly attack 14 points, and from there, they continuously attacked with destructive force. The enemy fought 550 battles (from April 10 to May 5, 1972) by plane, including 6 battles with B52 strategic planes and 16 artillery attacks from the sea, dropping 10,000 tons of bombs and ammunition, an average of nearly 200 tons per square kilometer, each person suffered 340 kg of explosives - up to that time)
Mr. Nguyen Dang Che (head of the ferry at Thuy wharf in 1955) walked straight ahead of me, then stopped beside a large pile of sand, which used to be the head of ferry wharf I, turned back and said:
- In 1972, I was the head of Ben Thuy ferry for three years.
Nguyen Dang Che took over the position of ferry chief in early 1969. He confided: “A real chief, always wearing a red armband with the words Ferry Chief on his arm, tall and strong like a military commander, but a real military one. The ferry workers were originally transferred from the army. Phi recalled that he could see how important his position was at that time and how heavy his responsibility was. “In November 1965, the Central Party Secretariat and the government decided to transfer the task of crossing the river (Ben Thuy ferry) from the Ministry of Transport to the military. Ben Thuy ferry from 9 people to take a ferry trip across the river took 40 minutes. Ben Thuy engineers reduced it to only 6 people with a time of 10 to 15 minutes with the initiative of only turning the canoe, not turning the ferry when the ferry left the dock”.
Mr. Nguyen Dang Che pondered: the unit called Ben Thuy engineers, actually consisted of 3 companies: Hoang Mai artillery company, Nam Dan artillery company and Ben Thuy engineering company.
Nguyen Dang Che said slowly and firmly:
“On November 1, 1968, the US forced the air force to stop the unprecedented bombing (words used by writer and journalist Madeleine Rippô, who was twice awarded the title Hero of France by the French state and government, and twice awarded the highest Legion of Honor by the President of the French Republic). At the end of 1968, the Ben Thuy ferry was awarded the title Hero of the People's Armed Forces for its outstanding achievements through four years of heroic and steadfast fighting and boundless sacrifice, creative spirit and will to overcome death in the face of the giant bombs of the superpower America. I came back to take on the task of ferry captain at this time. A young soldier, only two years old, had a few achievements in clearing unexploded bombs and magnetic bombs on traffic routes in the province such as Truong Bon, Ru Tret and Lam River. I was worried! Such a resilient collective with many achievements, three veteran soldier companies of the air force had one experienced battalion commander. leading. Am I too young, too "inexperienced"? But thinking back, this task of standing out on the river to take bullets and bombs, riding on bombs, is not something young people can handle. And the responsibility of holding on to this river of fire, these two banks of fire, a member has no right to compare, to retreat. He laughed with a voice that still echoed on the river: I am tall, walk firmly, dignified like a general, and not afraid, not retreating before the death that threatens every second and minute because of the ferries at night, leading the brothers with confidence.
We waded through the lush grass to find the entrance and traces of the great house inside Dung Quyet mountain. Mr. Che stopped and pointed at the foot of the mountain covered with black rocks:
- You are a soldier, a soldier at this Ben Thuy, and a comrade who protects our lives. Although the ferry brothers have been transferred to traffic management, they still live and work very strictly under the soldier regime. The three hundred people are divided into two shifts at night to operate the ferry from 8pm to 5am. A switchboard is located in Dung Quyet mountain connected to a telephone station located at the head of the wharf. The switchboard can contact directly with the Ministry of Transport, and directly with the departments of Nghe An province and Vinh City. In particular, from the Dung Quyet Mountain switchboard, a direct call could be made to the 233rd anti-aircraft artillery regiment (Dong Da Regiment) during the most fierce years of 1968 and 1972. The communication content revolved around: whether the ferry was blocked or not, handling of wounded and dead soldiers, reporting on areas of unexploded bombs and magnetic bombs that US aircraft had just dropped, requests for support, help with living conditions, words of encouragement, a few boxes of dried pork belly, cala thau egg powder, etc.
For a long time, the heart of Dung Quyet mountain has been like a miniature underground city, with many nooks and crannies, many types of tunnels connected together. Quyet mountain has become the "great home" of ferry workers and many other forces: warehouses, engineers, observation posts, shelters for the people of neighborhood 5, Hung Thuy commune, Vinh Tan when American planes launched fierce bombing campaigns, or there were reports of B52 planes bombing at night in 1972. It can be said that Quyet mountain is a floating tunnel of Vinh - Ben Thuy that also contains many heroic, tragic and beautiful romantic stories of the fierce war, the boundary between life and death is so fragile, death not only threatens every night, every day but every minute, every second.
For us artillery soldiers on the post, they suffered even more danger, because they had no weapons to fight against tons of the most dangerous weapons at that time, they only had the courage, the will of a soldier ready to sacrifice for the country, which overcame the fear that we mentioned in the beginning, and the extraordinary sensitivity that was trained that our brothers still call "the sixth sense". I myself was also given that sensitive sense by a man in the battlefield, only later did I know when my friend, who was then an artillery squad leader and now a battalion commander, told me.
Mr. Nguyen Dang Che said in a low voice:
- Nine people on a ferry are responsible for their lives and a heavy responsibility for the great assets of the people, the army, the Party, the state, thousands of vehicles carrying ammunition, rice, food, tarpaulins, tents, and thousands of plastic shrouds for the dead on the battlefield. A ferry crossing the 600 meter wide Ben Thuy River, going back and forth in both directions, takes at most 12 minutes. A ferry can carry 06 heavy transport vehicles - at night, 04 canoes are mobilized, pulling two ferries together to carry 12 vehicles. The ferry runs continuously, the brothers are ready to wait in turns, supplementing the wounded and the dead like the infantry unit attacking the fortress, lying at the entrance to the enemy's fort, every night nearly 1000 vehicles pass through the key point No. 1 Ben Thuy. In the morning, wet and exhausted, we brothers look like a group of water rats (in appearance), following the traffic trenches to the "great house". The majority of those who were able to catch up on sleep, held shovels to dig deeper and wider trenches, some reinforced and continued digging tunnels in the mountains. Mr. Che, the commander, wore a red bandana as the ferry captain, and Mr. Che, like his brothers, set up wooden panels himself, without a mat, lay down and stretched the plastic sheet to cover the water dripping from the ceiling, personally mixed the noodles with water, wrapped them in banana leaves and put them in the stove to grill. The ferry captain was most worried about the ferry jams and traffic jams, and most afraid of the sudden artillery fire from the sea, the large artillery aimed straight at his brothers and himself, the explosive force of a bomb, only after the explosion could the sound be heard, then came the bombs, rockets, and missiles dropped from the planes.
On a very tense night in the middle of 1972, Mr. Che was informed that there was a phone call from comrade Phan Trong Tue (at that time, the Minister of Transport). Picking up the receiver, he heard his deep but determined voice: "We are all fighting for our beloved South. The people of the South are waiting for us every hour, every minute. Please complete your responsibility, ferry captain." Mr. Che was both worried and happy because this urgent work contributed to the country's soldiers.
In November 1972, Ben Thuy ferry was blocked for seven days because American planes dropped too many time-explosive bombs and new generation magnetic bombs. The Americans were smart enough to improve bombs and ammunition to make them more modern, more dangerous, and the best in the world. The news that Ben Thuy ferry was blocked was announced to all of us, the Dong Da Defense Artillery Corps, and to the people of the city and Nghe An province. The plan to use demagnetizing boats (using bamboo nails instead of iron nails) to destroy the ferry was unsuccessful, so the Traffic Command (Comrade Phan Trong Tue was the direct commander, Major General Le Quang Hoa (later Senior Lieutenant General), Political Commissar of Military Region 4, was the direct political commissar) mobilized magnetic boats to glide over the bombs and continuously launch magnetic bombs to detonate them. Despite many launches, the eight stubborn boats hid their faces in the deep water and refused to make a sound. Mr. Che suggested using a large ferry to run at high speed, gliding over eight bombs with strong excitations to force the bombs to explode, the explosive force of the bombs would detonate the bombs next to them. Mr. Nguyen Sy Hoa, then the Standing Member of the Provincial Party Committee and Vice Chairman of the province, asked loudly: "Who will be the commander of this suicide ferry?" Mr. Che calmly, his voice firm: "Report, I am the ferry captain, I am directly in command of the ferry." Mr. Che ordered his brothers to tie the buoys very carefully because he anticipated that when the bombs exploded, they would be thrown out into the river.
At 3 p.m., taking advantage of the bad winter weather and cloudy skies, the ferry launched. The engines of the two speedboats roared. The first time they passed, only the ferry cut through the waves. The second time was the same, the third time (the third time is too much), two bombs near the ferry exploded, the strong magnetic field and the explosive force caused the bombs to explode almost immediately and violently. Huge masses of water erupted, the two canoes broke their chains and the ferry was thrown into the sky, two workers were so pressured that they vomited blood but still tried to steer the canoe to the shore. The ferry gradually sank, leaving Nguyen Dang Che under a very heavy pressure, floating on the river. The phone reported to the ferry governor that Nguyen Dang Che had died. His mother and wife cried and fainted. The unit preparing for his funeral brought the coffin and shroud. Unexpectedly, at 1 a.m., Nguyen Dang Che suddenly regained consciousness. With rare perseverance, the belief that a man could not die, and solid expertise, the hospital's chief doctor saved Nguyen Dang Che's life.
The brave spirit, golden courage, iron heart, and creativity of Che and his teammates opened the Ben Thuy ferry at a crucial time. B52 aircraft continuously bombed many areas in Nghe An, causing great pressure in supporting the front line. Also during this time, the Quang Trung missile regiment (Regiment 260), a battalion stationed near Dua airport, Anh Sn, Nghe An, shot down a B52 strategic aircraft. The aircraft was on Lao soil near the Thai border. The US Joint Chiefs of Staff established a scientific council to study and for the first time recognized the SAM 2 missile shooting down an American B52 aircraft (That was the night of November 22, 1972). The Air Defense - Air Force organized for gunners to join the Quang Trung regiment at Dua airport to practice and gain experience in shooting down B52 aircraft. At that time, it was exactly one month after the first night of the Dien Bien Phu in the air battle in Hanoi - the first night the US bombed Hanoi was December 18, 1972.
With outstanding achievements in three years, especially in 1972, Nguyen Dang Che was proposed by Nghe An province to be awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces, but Nguyen Dang Che firmly refused. He confided:
“The collective of soldiers and workers of Ben Thuy ferry have many examples and many heroic actions. At the most difficult times, when brothers stepped onto the ferry to leave the dock, it was a heroic action. Nguyen Xuan Cu, a canoe driver, had his arm torn off by a sea shell that exploded on the ferry. He calmly used his left hand to hold it tight and stop the bleeding. When he fell down, he still used both feet to steer the ferry to the right dock for the car to get on. 21 brothers were crushed and buried by bombs. I myself, at the time when the US attacked the ferry most fiercely, was with the team to bury 8 brothers who died. As soon as the graves were built, the bombs exploded and they were dug up again. I sat and hugged my brothers from 8 pm until 12 am, sometimes using my body to cover them but still could not bury them. There are many more comrades of mine who are worthy. They deserve to be awarded the title of hero.
I walked with him on Phuong Hoang Trung Do street, he showed me the location of the big cemetery now full of houses. Mr. Che had tears in his eyes:
- I don't know where my brothers were taken - His voice choked:
- I have submitted a report to many people: the Ministry of Transport, the departments in the province and the military policy agency, requesting that the living brothers meet again after 40 years, then go find and light a memorial for the deceased brothers that have not been organized yet. Now there are many management agencies related to the ferry. There is a bridge, there is a good road. There is also a bridge project. He said as if crying: Now that there is money, will people forget! ...
He led me to the top of the beautiful Ben Thuy bridge, his voice filled with emotion:
- Where is the battlefield where he sacrificed his life for us?
I showed him the sandbank, the water, the tree bank and he said in a loud, surprised voice:
- That battlefield is also a point of the relic area.
Historical notes of the writerDao Thang
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