“Lach Truong girl” donated blood twice to navy soldiers

That girl is Mrs. To Thi Dao from Nam Huan village, Hoa Loc commune (Hau Loc). She is 82 years old this year, 61 years of Party membership, but she still remembers the day of August 5, 1964, exactly 60 years ago.

Ms. To Thi Dao with the gift from the Navy Command on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the first victory of the Vietnam People's Navy and the People's Army of the North. Photo: KIEU HUYEN

Growing up at a time when the resistance war against the US to save the country was in a difficult period. In 1964, the US Navy began patrolling the Gulf of Tonkin to show off its forces, control coastal shipping and gather intelligence on our defenses. Most seriously, the US imperialists created the so-called “Gulf of Tonkin Incident” in late July and early August 1964 to deceive public opinion, create an excuse to expand the war, escalate attacks on the North of our country, use the navy to provoke and launch large-scale air strikes across the North.

Lach Truong - a large estuary of Thanh Hoa province, is an ideal anchorage for the People's and Navy's ships as well as transport ships when transporting goods from Hai Phong to the South. The enemy's plot and trick is to use a large air force to suddenly attack massively, intimidating the spirit of our army and people from the beginning. On August 5, 1964, President Johnson ordered the air force and navy to "retaliate", opening the 9-year war of destruction by the US air force and navy on a large scale and brutally against North Vietnam.

Faced with that situation, the Vietnamese Navy soldiers, directly officers and soldiers of the surface warship force (the predecessor of Brigade 171) under the coordination of air defense troops, police, militia and self-defense forces, directly militia and guerrillas of Hoang Truong and Hoa Loc communes actively dug tunnels, practiced, and were ready to fight when the enemy arrived. The communes along the estuary, Lach Truong self-defense forces, and armed police units were assigned the task of coordinating with naval units to fight back the enemy, protect the target, and at the same time, coordinate to rescue wounded and dead soldiers on naval ships when combat occurred.

Recalling the days exactly 60 years ago, at that time, Ms. To Thi Dao, who was the secretary of the Youth Union and the squad leader of the militia squad in Hoa Ngu hamlet, Hoa Loc commune, said: “At 2:15 p.m. on August 5, 1964, while the people were working and producing, many groups of enemy planes from the East Sea flew in to bomb from Hon Ne island to Lach Truong estuary. In the sky, planes dropped bombs and launched rockets; under the sea, bullets from our ships were fired; on both banks, the firepower of the forces crisscrossed each other and aimed at the planes. Besides the fishing boats, our youth force was also ordered to row to the navy ship to resupply ammunition and evacuate the wounded.”

She told about the female militia squad in Hoa Ngu hamlet, Hoa Loc commune, who used boats to supply ammunition to naval ships and treat wounded soldiers under enemy fire; told about the boat that she and Ms. Hoang Thi Khuyen were adrift at sea... as if it had just happened yesterday. "Just as I was bringing wounded soldiers along the mangrove and parrot rows to shore, I heard the doctors and nurses calling for young volunteers to donate blood. Hearing the call, I was the first to volunteer to donate blood." After donating blood, I continued rowing the boat with Ms. Khuyen.

The number of wounded soldiers was over 100 people, so a lot of blood was needed. "I immediately ran back in, held out my hand and told the nurse: Please take my blood, see if it matches anyone's blood! But the nurse recognized me and said: No, I just took your blood. Are you To Thi Dao? I said: I took your blood just now but I'm still fine," Ms. Dao recalled.

After being “refused”, she continued to row the boat out to sea to bring the wounded soldiers to shore. The loudspeaker announcement for blood donations did not stop, and she was “lucky to receive a second blood transfusion”. “After resting for a while, I and Ms. Khuyen took the last trip out to sea. My sister and I continued rowing the boat, and when we saw a person’s arm, I said: It seems like there is someone. Ms. Khuyen said: It must be a spoil of war left behind by the Americans. Despite saying that, we still rowed the boat forward. It turned out that it was our soldier, my sister and I rolled him onto the boat and brought him to shore”.

The heroic battle of the army and people in the area ended. We shot down two planes and damaged two others. This was also the first time the army and people of Thanh Hoa shot down an American plane with infantry guns. From the story of the first aid on August 5, 1964, in 1965, Ms. To Thi Dao was sent to Hai Phong to report on the typical case.

Recalling those days, Mrs. To Thi Dao, despite her old age, still sparkled with joy in every word she told. How could she not be happy when, later, at the art exchange “50 years of the first victory” held in Hai Phong in 2014, a soldier named Mo, whom she had saved in Lach Truong in 1964, recognized her, and quickly brought a bouquet of flowers to give her, emotionally saying: “Here is my benefactor!”

Since then, every Tet holiday, Mr. Mo and his family from Hai Phong went to Thanh Hoa to visit Mrs. Dao. On August 5th, he did not forget to call to thank her: "Because of you, I have 3 children and the life I have today."

On this 5th trip to Hai Phong, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the first victory of the Vietnam People's Navy and the army and people of the North, Mrs. Dao made an appointment to visit Mr. Mo's house again.

After those days of “sailing and donating blood”, in 1965, Ms. To Thi Dao was elected Vice Chairwoman of the People’s Committee of Hoa Loc commune. From 1966 until she retired from social insurance in 1993, she worked at the Provincial Women’s Union.

These days in August, the house at 242 Le Lai Street, Dong Son Ward (Thanh Hoa City) where she lives is always visited by individuals and organizations. Every time she tells a story, she becomes more emotional. “Thinking about May 8th, I feel tears in my eyes. I feel so sorry for the navy soldiers, surrounded by water, with only a ship drifting in the middle of the sea. I cannot forget the image of the wounded soldiers at that time. Even though their bodies were covered in bandages, they still wanted to return to the ship to continue fighting. Living through that moment, witnessing that bravery with my own eyes, that is the support for me to always strive in life, at the same time encouraging my children and grandchildren to be grateful to the previous generations, to strive to build the homeland and protect the Fatherland”.

KIEU HUYEN

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/co-gai-lach-truong-hai-lan-hien-mau-cho-cac-chien-si-hai-quan-221102.htm