|
In Memoriam – Battle of
Dak To |
| A sip
of Jose Cuervo for the brothers |
| so
revered and dear… |
| In
honor of the many brave comrades |
| who
are no longer here… |
| To
those who fought and persevered |
| on
bitter Hill 875, |
| To
those who breathed their last there, |
| and
those who emerged alive: |
| You
remain forever memorialized |
| in the
hearts of all who were there; |
| While
they live the sun will not rise upon |
| A day
when they do not care. |
| Some
gave all they had; |
| Some
gave all they could. |
|
Salute. |
| T.P.
Woodfork |
| For
Terry Sutherland, who was there. |
|
November 3, 1967 |
|
Battle of Dak To begins |
| In
some of the heaviest fighting seen in the Central Highlands area, heavy
casualties are sustained by both sides in bloody battles around Dak To,
about 280 miles north of Saigon near the Cambodian border. |
|
The 1,000 U.S. troops there
were reinforced with 3,500 additional troops from the U.S. 4th Division
and the 173rd Airborne Brigade. They faced four communist regiments of
about 6,000 troops. The climax of the operation came in a savage battle
from November 19-22 for Hill
875, 12 miles southwest of Dak To. The 173rd was victorious, forcing the
North Vietnamese to abandon their last defensive line on the ridge of
Hill 875, but the victory was a costly one because the paratroopers
suffered the loss of 135 men, 30 of whom died as a result of an
accidental U.S. air strike on U.S. positions. In the 19 days of action,
North Vietnam fatalities were estimated at 1,455. Total U.S. casualties
included 285 killed, 985 wounded, and 18 missing. |
|
During this battle, the North Vietnamese failed to achieve one of their
main objectives, which was the destruction of an American unit. They
came close, but the Americans, despite heavy losses, had achieved the
true victory: they mauled three enemy regiments so badly that they were
unavailable for the Tet Offensive that the Communists launched in late
January 1968. |
|
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