You Saved My Life

Bravo Company, 1st platoon 1/501, sometime probably in late May 1969 in Operation " Lamar Plain" near Tam Ky I Core, Vietnam . . Our company , like so many others of 1st Battalion, were to link up with the Americal Division, can't remember which battalions or companies of these men that just had the crap kicked out of them by a division of NVA from the North. Anyway, my squad led while Joe's squad followed 2nd, up a slight hill and rounded some scrub. I was in point, as we came into a small clearing, I told 2 of my new men to cover the flank to the left. I was pointing out their fire zone and what to do. Joseph L. Moses , the squad leader behind me came along side me, I didn't even know he was there. Little did we know, but we walked into a NVA base camp and they were as surprised as we were. I was talking to my 2 new men, when I had stopped the entire platoon behind me. I had a M-16 burst next to my head, about 3 feet from my ears. It scared me to death! Out from the side of a bunker, that we did not see came a NVA soldier with his AK-47 raised to his shoulder. Joe saw him and stepped out to my side, while my head was to the left, and killed the NVA. The distance between us and the enemy was about 10 yards. I swung my head fast to look to the front, to see the NVA fall. Joe said, "He almost killed you, but I got him". We moved up and everyone was on "rock & roll". Then I saw the bunker, and pulled out of a canteen pouch, that I kept full of baseball grenades, one, and pulled the pin and threw it in the doorway and hollered grenade ! Everyone close, hit the dirt. The explosion blew out the doorway area as always. I looked inside after listening for a minute and waiting for the grey smoke to clear. There were 4 NVA soldiers that had bandages on them laying on the ground. It was a medic station. Some showed slight signs of movement. I told one of my E-4's that I won't say his name, to finish them while I rounded up my squad. He stuck the M-16 in the doorway and shot each of them in the head. That was 5 NVA K.I.A. in less than 2 minutes. Joe got 1, I got 4, ( didn't even get a in country ). Wrong time of year, many of you will understand what that means. Those 4 that I whipped the grenade on were doomed anyway. Other enemy close by, must have been so shocked at the force upon them, that they fled back to regroup before the next part of that fire fight, that I won't go into now. Inside the bunker were weapons, packs, personal items of the 5 NVA. Within 5 minutes, we had to move and the second part of that fire fight started. I did not even have the chance to get any spoils of war out of that bunker, some other of our men did. Before we moved forward, Joe picked the AK-47 up and said to me (Why did he not kill you, he had the drop on you before I shot him)? Joe looked at the AK and said "Here is why", a round had jammed before being fully seated into the chamber! Surely that NVA did not know that that shell was not fully seated into the chamber? Joe handed me the shell and I put it into my pocket and carried it all the way home. I'm holding it in my hand as I type this. The top of the metal jacket is partially shaved back where it ground into the chamber and stopped. On the primer side it say's ( 71 - B or G 6. It is still a live round. It also, as I look at it , where the case necks down , part of the case is curled back. Tell me I was not lucky that day! In all the excitement of" Lamar Plain", I did not once tell Joseph L. Moses , if you are out there, "THANK YOU FOR SAVING MY LIFE" I do dearly owe you my brother !!!!!


Sgt. Dave "Doc" Hollady
B/1/501: Vietnam 1968-'69