Vietnam 1969
I joined Mass 3 in Chu Lai two or three month before the move to Hill 327 in Da Nang. My MOS was 1141 Electrician of course the first duty in Vietnam was Mess Duty. Chu Lai had beautiful beaches and crystal clear water who knew there was a police action going on except for all the military equipment and personal.
During the move to Hill 327 there was a lot going on and a lot to do. My brother Cpl. Carlin Lee Guidry also a United States Marine who was stationed on Monkey Mountain shows up to visit. What a surprise. He actually arrived in time to join us for the boat ride of the last of the equipment to Da Nang.
Hill 327 was totally different from Chu Lai. The monsoon rains had started and the place was a muddy mess. My most vivid memory of Hill 327 was during the dry season they were burning the perimeter around the concertina wire. I took a few pictures and went back into my hooch. A short time later fire started leaping up the side of the building.
I went outside and there was a large tanker truck parked on the side of the my building. The operator of the truck was on fire. One of the other guys from my hooch got him to lay down on the ground and we put out the fire. The medic showed up almost immediately and gave him a shot for the pain. He was medevacked out a short time later and sent to the burn center out of country.
We found out a few days later that he did not make it. Sorry I do not remember his name. I can only thank him for turning off the fuel before it reached the truck and blew it up. We found out later the truck was filled with a mixture of diesel and gas hit a hot spot which ignited the fuel and followed it to the nozzle.
I was later sent to An Hoa ASRT as the generator operator. What a great group of guys. I had two 400 cycle generators to keep running. Only had a problem one time and they sent a mechanic out to fix it. We had a great time filling sand bags, building a shower and listening to the 155 and 175 big guns go off every night. I found out much later from Chuck Coons a fellow Hog member that the big guns were supporting his outfit near the DMZ.
I joined up for two years so after An Hoa my time was up and I became a civilian again.
Pictures a worth a thousand words. I have a few to send. Hope you enjoy them.
Helo Extraction An Hoa ASRT
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https://photos.app.goo.gl/5kGHbi76emsTz3eQ2
Randy Guidry <randy.guidry@outlook.com>
Click for all of Randy's Photos
https://photos.app.goo.gl/PpJJpSDV8lBFVjeD3
