Page 190 - The Viet-Cong Tet_Offensive_1968

These huts were hit with bornbs and set on fire. The cornrnunists took
cqver in foxholes and ditches. To dig thern out Allied Forces had to
launch rockets and spray rnachine gun fire on thern.

While the fighting was raging at this bridge rnany refugees
caught in panic tried to cross the bridge which was their onJ.y way to get
out of the battle area, They jostled one another and sorne were thrown
into the barbed wire entanglernents across the road way and were
trarnpled by the fleeing crowd. It was estirnated that approxirnately
100 refugees were either killed or injured while crossing the bridge.
The dead were arnong those trarnpled by the crowd or caught in cross
fires. The flocks of refugees rnoving in the streets while gunships were
strafing low were also caught in the {ire and rnany were killed. Many
others running by mistake into VC firing positions were either hit by
enerny fire or killed by gunships striking VC occupied houses. The
Vietnarnese troops then placed tirnber planks on the barbed wire {or
the refugees to step over.

It was recorded that loudspeakers frorn aircraft had war-
ned the people to keep out of the strike zones but in this case of street
fighting, they had to escape by crossing the bridge which was their only
way to enter the city unless they were forced by the enerny to stay on
the spot.

Before May 9th a cornbined VN-US force consisting of
the 3rd Cornpany of the 39th Battalion, 9th US Infantry Division with
supporting tanks and the Znd Company, 35th Ranger Battalion had set
up a strong defensive perirneter to; protect Y-Bridge against enerny
sabotage, to prevent the enerny frorn establishing a bridgehead across
the bridge and also to secure the protection of the Cho Quan power plant
which had been previously bornbarded but sustained no darnage.
The battle of Y-Bridge tapered off on May IOth, Clouds of
grnoke from fires kindled the day before still rose high into the sky.
During the night, the enerny intended to seize the workhouse to release
a nurnber of hooligans detainedthere and to provi.de thern with weapons
as a [reans to have rnore reinforcernents but the enerny plan failed.

VN-US forces started to counterattack. Frorn the direc-
tion of Y-Bridge a friendly colurnn drove the enerny frorn Pharn The
Fllen Street towards Cau Mat Bridge. The 3rd Cornpany, 39th US
Battalion supp6rted by arrnored personnel carriers advanced deep into
Pharn The Hien Street. The Znd Cornpany, 35th Ranger Battalion also
with supporting US arrnored personnel carriers advanced to seize the

- 193 -