Sharing Our Stories

Richard Green
Engineer
Norris Yard 

Page 2 : The Saga of Hill 950 - U.S. Third Marines - 26th Marine Regiment

While I kept the middle under fire, Marine Green and Marine Castillo kept the side of the hill under grenade and small arms attack. Eventually my M60 malfunctioned. 

At some point in the battle the Armies twin 40mm cannons (Dusters) 1/40th Artillery are now called into action to try and help the beleaguered hilltop firing from the Khe Sanh perimeter.

We were once again almost out of grenades. You could not just pop the spoon and throw since it was such close quarters. I threw a WP grenade at an NVA and hit him about chest high. I could hear him scream as it went off. 

At one point we had a sniper also firing at us. Marine Castillo pointed him out to me and then with one shot dropped him out of a tree.

Marines Green and Castillo were all over the hill that night fighting from different positions providing cover fire and protecting the sides.  

At one point I saw a helmet moving between two bunkers, and as I took aim I realized it was Marine Green who looked up at me and smiled!

Marine Cpl. John Burke, already wounded, had been shielding and tending to the wounded when he tried to get back into action himself. He then charged the NVA throwing grenades as he went and was cut down.

Marine Buffalo was wounded about 0130 hours and had stayed on the radio directing artillery. Since the hill was all but lost, Marine Buffalo then asked the artillery to fire on the position with all they had.

"Good thing they didn't have the right measurements, or I wouldn't be here today. Seemed like Khe Sanh threw everything they had at us but the kitchen sink. Couldn't really tell what they were hitting since the hill was fogged in."

Marine David Buffalo reports he had thought 1/26 was the only unit there. I don't know if it was an RPG or hand grenade that came into the bunker all I know was it went off and killed Marine Spear, wounded me and a Marine named Howard. Howard from my communications platoon ran out the bunker, and came back in after the thing exploded without being seen.

Marine Lawrence had a blue battery operated player, playing "Groovin, by the Young Rascals." It played over and over again all night. He got to the other side of the hill, and an explosion knocked him senseless and to the ground. Next to him was Marine Lawrence. Mortars came in for a few minutes, which awoke everyone. Marine Castillo was stunned. A squad or more of NVA charged over him. Running, Marine Lawrence groaned, and they bayoneted him. Marine Castillo was quiet, played dead. If he had groaned they would have poked him too. Marine Sherrill was probably in action shooting NVA. Marine Castillo later saw Marine Stevenson his eyes as big as saucers, in shock. The guilt he must have felt. He said he saw them attack three bunkers Marine Sherrill's included. Several Marines killed the NVA. Marine Castillo thinks Marine Sherrill was wounded, and crawled into his bunker only to be hit by a grenade and then bayoneted. Marine Castillo arose to be confronted by 5 NVA. Twelve feet in front of him, three stopped.

The first two left to right fired tracers at his head. One went by one ear and one by the other. The third one kneeling froze for a second. Marine Castillo knew that if nothing else he could shoot well. He shot the first one in the head, the second, and the third, and the third one fired up into the air already dead. His M16 jammed, after the third shot.

Then there were two others a few feet beyond. The one on the right crouched to fire, but the one on his left decided he was going to bayonet Marine Castillo, so he came forward blocking the shot of the other. Marine Castillo threw his M16 sideways into their faces, and then picked the guy up and threw him off the cliff.

A Marine from behind shot the other NVA. Then Marine Castillo crawled around and got an AK47. He killed one NVA with a knife and one with an e-tool to get their rifle and ammo. Otherwise he just stabbed each one to be sure they were dead, and fought all night using AK47s, belonging to the other side.

As the battle developed he was in the forward fighting position with Marine Green on his flank.

He passed AK47s and clips back to other Marines to use. For one long period, he was having a grenade battle as the NVA dug in. He said they were landing all around him with no effect. He thought he was invincible, but he also thought he was as good as dead. It's a mental oxymoron, but true.

Marine Castillo was injured and received a Purple Heart. He said the NVA should not have dug in, but should have just swept the hill and they would have had us, but they dug in. Very un-grunt like, the Americans were all fighting individually and yelling to each other, giving away their positions. The enemy must have thought they were crazy he was told later. Plus Marine Castillo was yelling at the NVA in French and Vietnamese "Put down your weapons and live."

Marine Sherrill and Marine Castillo’s group were totally outnumbered. Marine Castillo said after a while, a moon was up, and it was like no one was paying any more attention to him. It was like the enemy just put him out of their minds, as if they had paid him so much attention that they now seemingly just wished him gone and didn't think about him anymore. So Marine Castillo just crawled around to get good shots and killed a lot of NVA.

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