Memories of a time of fire and efforts to restore the old ferry

More than 50 years have passed, but the tragic memories of the fiery times of the army and people of Vinh Linh still come back to Mrs. Ly's mind. For decades, her eyes still turn red whenever someone mentions the story of the ferry that once transported wounded and fallen soldiers...

The work of the “martyrs’ team” usually starts quite late. According to the assignment, the task of transporting the wounded is undertaken by people in the Tan Son, Tan My, Co My, and Di Loan areas. The force on duty at the ferry terminal has 3 combat platoons. Activities are carried out closely according to each route, location, and area.

Around 7-8 pm, from the checkpoints, the whole team quietly went out to Ben Hai River. On the shore, ammunition and provisions were ready. A short time later, the small boat was loaded. The boat's rim sank, only half a hand's breadth from the river surface. Filled with "goods", the boat rocked and splashed on the water towards Gio Linh.

That was the way it went, but when the boat returned from wharf C, it still had to carry wounded soldiers and martyrs who had fallen to the south bank. Their bodies were also gathered at secret locations along the river near Bach Chu village (Gio Linh) before being placed on the boat to return. It only took about ten minutes on a favorable windy day for the boat to reach the shore of Vinh Linh.

At this moment, receiving the order, the group of ambulances and corpse carriers from Tan Son, Tan My, Co My, Di Loan… hurriedly ran out to welcome them. No one was allowed to turn on the lights, no one was allowed to speak loudly. There was only the sound of footsteps on the mud, occasionally mixed with a sorrowful sigh.

“ Everything was done in the utmost secrecy. The team members rushed from one trip to another. Every night, we had 12 shifts. The force consisted of 10 militiamen who took turns carrying the load. Every 2 people would carry a martyr or wounded soldier back through ferry C. Yet there were many days when the ferry was overloaded, ” Mrs. Ly said, looking towards the riverbank in the distance.

The wounded soldiers were taken to nearby squads for treatment. The martyrs had to be carried to a large gravel dump in Vinh Thach commune for temporary burial. At times, the dump was overloaded, and Mrs. Ly's group had to take turns carrying the soldiers to nearby cemeteries to complete the final procedures.

Luckier than the young soldiers in Mrs. Tho’s story was Mr. Le Quang Anh, from Tan My village, Vinh Giang commune. In the 1960s, he and his comrades in the DKZ battery safely returned to their hometown after the Cua Viet-Dong Ha naval battle - a return he called a “miracle”. Although he did not directly work at ferry C, Mr. Anh also had unforgettable memories of this place when he had to starve for 2 days waiting for the opportunity to cross the river to the north bank through the martyrs’ wharf.

“That day, the US bombed heavily around the border area. We were supposed to return to the north bank via ferry B, but because there were many people coming and going at Tung Luat ferry, and we were afraid of being discovered, the leaders assigned the whole team to take a boat from ferry C,” he recalled.

While waiting for the right time to cross the river, the troops were directed to hide deep in the bushes in the Bach Loc-Xuan My section (now Trung Hai commune, Gio Linh district). This place was overgrown with vegetation and not too far from the boat assembly point. Mr. Vo Te - the boatman at ferry C at that time instructed: " Whatever you do, you are absolutely not allowed to show your face. Even cooking is not allowed because it will reveal your position ."

“After many nights of hunger and continuous fighting, my stomach was so hungry. We immediately went to the riverbank to catch fish that had floated up due to the pressure of the bombs to eat. Just as we reached the edge of the mud, we suddenly saw two bodies of our soldiers floating on the river. Their blood darkened the surface of the water. For a moment, everyone fell silent,” Mr. Anh’s voice choked and broke when recalling the past.

Taking a deep breath, he continued: “My teammates and I tried to swim down, but the enemy dropped heavy flares and fired bullets continuously above. Doing so would mean death and would reveal our squad’s location. Although our hearts were broken, we had to helplessly watch our comrades drift away.”

Many years later, Mr. Anh still cannot forget the sad story on the river border that day. He has missed many opportunities to “hold his comrades’ hands one last time” to bring them back.

“Now, ferry C has been filled in, few people remember and few people talk about the old story. But the days of carrying the bodies of my comrades across the ferry are still the most unforgettable memories in my life,” Ms. Nguyen Thi Ly said sadly…

In recent years, the province has invested in and restored many historical and cultural relics. Up to now, the locality has more than 500 relics that have been recognized as provincial relics. The historical relic system in Quang Tri is mostly places that mark historical events during the war.

Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Tri province Le Minh Tuan shared: Although the province has paid special attention to the restoration and preservation of these relics, due to limited resources, up to now there are still some historical relics that have not been restored or embellished, including Ben do Luy (Ben do C).

“The Luy Ferry Relic (Ferry Wharf C) in Vinh Giang Commune, Vinh Linh is one of six component relic sites belonging to the Hien Luong-Ben Hai Special National Relic Site, which was ranked according to Decision No. 2383/QD-TTg dated December 9, 2013 of the Prime Minister. Currently, among these component relic sites, the investment and restoration work has only focused on a few sites of great historical significance and significance to the province, especially the area on both banks of Hien Luong Bridge, and then Tung Luat Ferry (Ferry Wharf B),” Mr. Le Minh Tuan informed.

With determination and efforts in preserving, protecting and promoting the value of historical relics, Mr. Le Minh Tuan said that he will further strengthen the responsibility of Party committees and authorities at the grassroots level, the coordination between local state management agencies and political, social and mass organizations, etc. to effectively carry out the work of embellishing and preventing the degradation of the historical-cultural relic system. At the same time, linking the work of preserving relics with sustainable tourism development; promoting propaganda activities, introducing and promoting the land, people and culture of Quang Tri to provinces and cities nationwide and international friends.

In addition, the cultural sector will focus all resources, including support resources from the Central Government, local budgets and socialized resources to invest adequately in preserving and promoting the value of relics. From there, creating unique and distinctive tourism products of Vinh Linh district, contributing to creating momentum to promote tourism development into an important economic sector of the district.

According to Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Tri province Le Minh Tuan, it is necessary to complete the planning work soon, especially for national relics managed by Vinh Linh district. This is an important task to preserve the original elements that make up the relics as much as possible. In addition, it is necessary to orient the spatial structure, landscape and other typical values ​​of the relics.

“The Luy Ferry Relic (Ferry Wharf C) has been included in the planning for restoration, embellishment and preservation of the special national relic of Hien Luong-Ben Hai, which is currently being submitted to the Prime Minister for approval by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. After the Prime Minister approves, the sector will advise the Provincial People's Committee to call for investment to preserve, renovate and restore the relic according to the approved items,” Mr. Tuan added.

When he learned that we were trying to record the old story at ferry C, Party Secretary and Chairman of the People's Council of Vinh Giang Commune Nguyen Van An took the trouble to find the documents officially recorded in the book History of the Commune Party Committee that the group of authors introduced above. He also enthusiastically showed us to visit the martyrs' cemetery of the commune. This is not only the first martyrs' cemetery of the whole Vinh Linh district but also one of the gathering and burial points for martyrs brought back from the legendary ferry C.

After many restorations, the back of the stele remains intact, with bullet and bomb marks imprinted on the old brick floor.

In the spacious and neatly planned campus, the most prominent is the 16.1m high Fatherland Monument. With such a prominent height, in the past, the monument was a "landmark" for the enemy to bombard the northern bank. After many restorations, the back of the monument is still intact, with bullet and bomb marks imprinted on the old brick floor. Between the cracks, a sturdy Bodhi tree has sprouted, reaching up to catch the sun today.

The youngest reporter in the group quietly clasped her hands before the rows of silent graves, mumbling prayers. At its peak, Vinh Giang Commune Cemetery had over 2,000 martyrs. Currently, it is the resting place of 534 martyrs, of whom only 374 have been identified. They came from many different localities throughout the northern provinces.

Party Secretary and Chairman of the People's Council of Vinh Giang Commune, Nguyen Van An, lamented: “After the war, some areas recovered economically very quickly, and the work of preserving relics also encountered many difficulties. As time passed, many witnesses who knew about the existence of ferry C were no longer there, only a few people mentioned it. When the elders were still alive, it was necessary to thoroughly exploit their information. Because not far away, they were 'living' documents who understood the wartime story better than anyone else.”

Nhandan.vn

Source: https://special.nhandan.vn/hoi-uc-mot-thoi-lua-do-va-no-luc-phuc-dung-ben-do-xua/index.html