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An Email From Brian "Mac" McCormick about the weapons cahe Here goes.I assume this took place in October, 1967 as shown in the
picture of the sign. It fits because I was in B company 2/47th from
Sept.-Nov., 1967.
Some of my recollections of that operation are vivid because it was a
pretty big deal at the time. I believe this weapons cache was the largest
captured in the war up to that time.
We were on one of those operations where we were providing security around
an outfit of LCP`s that were cutting a swath through the jungle. A new road
was going to be bulldozed through the middle of the swath, but I can`t
remember where the road was going.
Anyway, one of our patrols came upon a trap door entry to the tunnel
system. The VC had dee dee`d, having heard us coming, so there wasn`t any
resistance that I can recall. After entering the tunnel system, our guys
realized that the complex was enormous. It went four or five levels under
ground and had been there since the French Indochina war.
We set up a perimeter around the area knowing we would be there a while
clearing out the system. For about five days we hauled the weapons out of
those tunnels. Had to crouch down because the passage ways were only about
four feet high. They were rounded at the top. Dug in that nasty red slimy
clay. The tunnels would go for a ways and than open to a room with cots,
tables, etc. where the troops stayed, or to a room full of weapons. Even had
a hospital room with instruments and other medical equipment. I remember
that the whole system smelled very strongly of raw vitamins. We were told
that the VC took raw vitamin B to ward off mosquitos and therefore malaria.
Trap doors in the floor would lead to another level deeper in the ground.
We found 75 millemeter howitzers five levels down in those tunnels. They
must have brought them down unassembled and re-assembled them underground.
Didn`t even try to bring these up. We left them down there and blew the
system on top of them. I remember helping haul up those 50 calibre
anti-aircraft guns shown in your pictures. Along with the more modern
weapons there were old US Springfields, M-1`s, and of course M-1 carbines.
There was also a large number of what I think were SK 44 Russian sniper
rifles. These were all covered in cosmoline and wrapped in black paper of
some sort. We were allowed to claim a rifle as a souvenir, and were
instructed to put a tag on our selection with our name and unit on it. The
weapons were to be assembled at a central point in Bearcat for photos, and
than delivered to us at our rear area later. We heard that the chopper crews
who were hauling out the weapons were appropriating some of the loot by
tossing them behind the seats. Then they would sell them as souvenirs.
So some of us took the bolts out of our weapons before we stacked them for
transport to Bearcat. Weapon`s useless without the bolt. They did deliver
the souvenirs to us in our rear area, but I didn`t have time to get mine
properly registered to take home. Sold it to an SFC Whitacre who ran the NCO
club in Bearcat. He said he was going to hang it above the bar in the club.
Anyone ever see it?
Shortly after the operation was completed, a bunch of our guys came down
with very sore lower backs. We found out this was early symptoms of malaria.
About 25 B company guys got this and were shipped off to
hospitals. We surmised that they contracted the malaria in the tunnels.
Virtually all of the cases were guys who didn`t take their regularly
distributed malaria tablets.
That`s the highlights of what I remember ... Forward any questions you might have.
Brian
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