Wartime tunnels discovered in Cua Tung

A tunnel about one meter wide and 1.2 meters high was recently discovered while digging the foundation for the construction of the Cua Tung Border Guard Station (Quang Tri).

The underground tunnels used by the People's Armed Police Force for fighting have just been discovered.

On March 1, Mr. Nguyen Huu Thang, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Tri, said that the functional sector is researching and preparing documents to assess the value and conservation plan of the newly discovered tunnel in Cua Tung town, Vinh Linh district. While digging the foundation for the construction of the Cua Tung Border Guard Station, construction workers discovered a tunnel about 4-5 meters deep underground. This tunnel is estimated to be about one meter wide, 1.2 meters high and its length is undetermined.

"Also discovered was a bronze tray, a pot of water with green tea leaves inside and some signs that there were remains," said Mr. Thang.

The provincial cultural sector has protected the scene and collected information. Initial assessment is that this is a tunnel of the armed police force, dug in 1965-1967 to hold out and fight when the US escalated and bombed the North. Currently, there are still some people in the locality who know about this tunnel and they are all elderly.

The newly discovered tunnel is located at Cua Tung estuary, downstream of Ben Hai River, which was the temporary border in 1954. About 50 meters from the tunnel towards the estuary is ferry A, a gathering place to transfer people, weapons and food across Ben Hai River to fight south, or to reinforce the outpost island of Con Co.

Inside the tunnel, a bronze tray, a kettle and signs of remains were also discovered.

Not far from the newly discovered military tunnel are two civilian tunnels. “We wish to rebuild a tunnel entrance to acknowledge the contributions of the armed police force and to educate our children and grandchildren about history,” said Lieutenant Colonel Cao Xuan Nam, Political Commissar of Cua Tung Border Guard Station. Currently, the construction work above this tunnel has been temporarily suspended.

During the years 1965-1968, when the US expanded its war of destruction to the North, especially the border areas such as Vinh Linh, people created a system of 114 tunnels and underground villages throughout 15 coastal communes and towns.

This tunnel village system effectively sheltered the army and people of Vinh Linh from the power of the US Air Force and became a height of military, architecture, and art when moving life completely underground.

In January 2015, the Vinh Linh tunnel village system and Vinh Moc tunnels were upgraded to special national monuments.

According to Tienphong.vn