Engineers in Vietnam

[phuloi]

The following article appeared in THE ARMY REPORTER (Long Binh, Vietnam) on January 13, 1968:

Engr Bde Operation Clears 50,000 Acres
Since the start of Operation Paul Bunyan in July 1967, land clearing teams of the 20th Engineer Brigade have cleared more than 50,000 acres of jungle.
The Ong Dong Jungle, for years a Viet Cong stronghold, no longer exists.
Engineers have completely cleared all the covering jungle from these former VC controlled areas depriving the enemy of his home and supply bases. Many highways no longer have a ?Claymore Corner? or and ?Ambush Alley?.
Clearing one to three hundred yards on either side of the highway, engineers have removed all the cover that the VC formerly used for ambush and tax collection.
Grenades, fire, booby traps, anti-tank mines, mortar and ground attacks against the land clearing units show the enemy is being hurt.
One VC said he surrendered because land clearing operations had destroyed his bunkers three times.
In this battle against the jungle, the engineers are using an old standby weapon, the bulldozer. The dozers are equipped with a Rome Plow land clearing blade.
This knife-edge blade is equipped with a long, sharp ?stinger? and makes short work of anything from light brush to six-to-eight feet (diameter) hardwood trees.
At times more than 600 acres per day of jungle have disappeared under the blades and tracks of the 20th Engr. Bde. Dozers.
When Rome plows proved too slow, an anchor chain was rigged between two dozers and up to eight or nine rows of rubber trees were cleared at one time.

[frisco-kid]

MAR or APR67 the 101st is operating around Duc Pho. My company is supposed to move up this hill where there's a deserted SF camp at the top. Was too easy to drop us off on top. Just before we get to the top, somebody hits a mine. Seems we're in the middle of a mine field. Someone trips another one before the word gets out. We freeze, and start going back EXACTLY the way we came. When we get out, we have 2 dead and 4 wounded. A company from the 326th ENG have to come up and clear the mine field. A tedious, nerve-wracking job. Them boys definately earned their $65 Combat Pay. I didn't envy them a bit.

[Arrow]

[splummer]

I would bet that most people including Vietnam Veterans did not know that one of the engineers jobs was mine clearing. I remember sitting in the hot sun and humidity waiting for those guys to clear the road in front of us. I'm thinking, there's no mines and lets just get this convoy going and over with only to hear a loud explosion in front of us. (oh. 20 year old me, thinks, I guess it was a good idea.]

[DMZ-LT]

one of the worst days i had was guarding some engineers that were building a road near Laos- where do you think they will be headed tomorrow ? Welcome home Griz !

[TVZ]

Anyone happen to have a picture of a Rome Plow? I can't find one online anywhere.

[phuloi]

In the cut..

[phuloi]

Troopers from the 25th Inf.Div in the cut...

[Andy]

I was going to ask what Bat. those APC's were from but I know it wasn't my 4/23 Mech. One guy has a helmet on, and no one is drinking beer. Must be 1/5th or 2/22.

The photo of the Rome Plow looks similar to those who operated in the Hobo Woods but I'd guess this operation was actually further north. War Zone 'C' perhaps? I remember talking to some Rome Plow guys who said they thought Chuck was bad but were more afraid of the red ants who nested in the trees. A nest falling on your vehicle was extremely bad juju.

Our engineers had this strange vehicle that had a very wide tube on the end of it that would extend several feet from the front of the vehicle. Attached to the tube were many, many chains. An engine was connected to the tube and make it spin at quite a few RPM's. The chains slapped the dirt roads and usually detonated any mines. They went out with a repair vehicle and a platoon (4) APC's. Problem was they only traveled at 3 or 4 MPH. Entirely too slow for my liking. Ambushing road clearing units was great sport for Charlie.

A combat engineer was a grunt with a special job and got screwed out of a CIB. I've got a cousin who was a Seabee, guess the same could be said for them.

Stay healthy,
Andy

[phuloi]

In the short stint with a land clearing company(TDY),I found that the hazards were many.Beside the obvious threats of being in Chuck`s back yard,as Andy said-you never knew what would come sailing out of the trees as you began to shake them.One time I recall a plow whacked a big hardwood with his stinger and down came a gook sniper.The little prick disappeared into a hole.The thing that scared me most was rolling over into a bomb crater.In the rainy season they were full of very ugly,stinky,alkyline water...YUK!