| You are here: Homepage > Main Menu > Stories Menu > Living in a Fish Bowl |
By John 'Z' Zimmerman Radio Relay Maintenance 1965-1967 We did not have enough material for the walls so we used clear plastic to keep the wind, rain and sand out. Since at night it is dark outside, light inside and the sides were clear plastic, everything inside “The Bar” could be seen from 100 yards away. One night everyone decided to go down to the Army MACV Compound about two miles up Highway 1. This is where the Army assisted in the training of new Vietnamese Army recruits. They had a real chow hall with tables with red and white checkered table cloths and wine bottles with candles and Vietnamese waitresses. I decided that I would stay and watch our communications van while they went to chow. While sitting in “The Bar” engrossed in reading a book and possibly replenishing my bodily fluids, I was startled back into reality by several gunshots that could not have been more than 50 yards from “The Bar”. It took me all of 5 seconds to realize that I was in a lighted room with clear plastic walls and it was dark outside and my every move could be seen from 100 yards away. I dove for the light switch and then fumbled for my M-16 which was hanging on the wall behind the bar. I chambered a round and waited for the next shoots, which never came. I ventured outside to see what was going on. I saw two Marines yelling and waving their weapons in the air. They were about 50 yards away so I could not understand what they were yelling, but it couldn’t be anything good. Our communications van was surrounded by a 10 foot sandbag wall and it was pitch black inside the enclosure so I grabbed a flashlight and headed for the van. Once inside the sandbag enclosure I felt I could safely turn on the flashlight because it could not be seen from the outside. I walked around the van and kept the M-16 pointed where the flashlight beam was shining. I felt relieved that I did not find anything. The van was a mobile van which means that it was mounted on tires and was therefore about three feet off the ground. I decided that I should look under the van, just to make sure no one was there. As the flashlight beam and M-16 were sweeping under the van I was shocked to see two eyes staring back at me. My first thought was that it was a VC and I should shoot him. Luckily for him I took a closer look, or maybe I was slow in pulling the trigger, and I saw that he looked like an American and he was wearing Marine fatigues. At this point I was no longer scared, I was pissed off. This SOB had almost caused me to shot a Marine. I dragged him out from under the van and told him to walk towards the two shouting Marines or I would shot his dub ass. It turned out that the two shouting Marines were MP’s and they were transporting a drunk marine to the local brig when he jumped out of the jeep and ran off into the night to hide under my van. They had fired several shots in the air to scare him, but only ended up scaring the hell out of me. I only fired my M-16 once while I was in Viet Nam, but that’s another story… John 'Z' Zimmerman Radio Relay Maintenance 1965-1967 (For John's contact information email Don) |
| You are here: Homepage > Main Menu > Stories Menu > Living in a Fish Bowl |