Seabees at work under combat conditions. We were trying to get as fast as possible a place that was safe and that was to dig bunkers for protection . The work was hard , dirty , tiring, and working in mud and rain at the same time. Trouble was while digging and building bunkers you were exposed to the enemy who just did not want you there in the first place so the odds of completing the work safely without casualties was not a sure thing. You worked exposed daily 
under constant fire be it small arms or mortars . Even with the bunkers completed you still had to come out sooner or later for whatever reason . You were still exposed and fair picking for charlie . It was a day to day gamble would you be the casualty for that day . I guess the hard work made you seem oblivious to your surroundings, and what was happening around you . No time to think . Picture was taken at Ben Luc while we were building under ground bunkers . Shows Navy Seabees from MCB 10 Detail Papa 1969.
ben luc, military, navy, navy seabees, Vietnam war, war
Navy Seabees Ben Luc Vietnam 1969
Gerald's Memoirs 
Thanks for helping build that base. It was my final stop after being towed up the river on a barge where we would take over the maintenance work associated with the PBRs in starting the new directive of Operation Giant Slingshot. I was an EN 3 whose time in country was maybe a week. I spent some time as Oil King on the base them was able to pass that over to someone else. As Oil King you didn’t have to stand watch or perform any special duties, but you were on duty/call 24/7. When a boat came in it had to fuel up then just in case they had to make a fast exit. I had no idea what was happening or what to expect. But time was good to me and I came home OK.
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Thank you Roger, nice to know someone else was actually there and knows the place personally. It makes this post worthwhile. Have a great day. Gerry!
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Thank you.
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Like you said, you never know/new when or if something was going to happen. That was the first US / Vietnamese Navy base established, and since we were starting to get ready for the turnover to them. There were always fights among them causing problems on the base, and you never were really sure who was really on our side. There were times when they would fight among themselves and chase each other around the shacks shooting at each other, guess thinking the shells were only going to hit them and no one else. From time to time we also had some grenades with the pins pulled and shoved into coke cans waiting for the typical sailor to walk by and give it a kick and have the grenade roll out causing everyone to run. One time we had a grenade taped under a table in the chow hall with the pin taped to the chair waiting for someone to pull it out. Fortunately one of our army friends from up the road found it and took it down. Used to have them come in all the time from down the road cuz we had such good food and fresh milk. Sunday was always the most crowded as that was when we had T bone steaks, bbq ed out back. We also had what we thought were fresh eggs, till my last 30 days when I worked in the chow hall and saw their boxes. They were frozen leftovers from WW II. Could not believe that when I saw the pack date on the boxes. Well, like all war time mems, we have the good ones and the bad.
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great thanks for the information. good to hear what was going on .
take care and again thank you for your information.
________________________________
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Roger,
I was one of the CB builders at Ben Luc and believe I remember your arrival on that barge. I can pretty clearly recall the build up of support materials/barges/boats along the shore there and what a time it was. Where you there when the Quad 40s on the barracks(?) ship would fire support/harassing fire at night? I also remember Puff setting the nights alight on several occasions. Glad you are home safe Brother.
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I was on that detail down from Camp Evans.
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EA2 Steve Wagner—-I was the surveyor on this project and arrived shortly after New Years day in 1969 with about ten other Seabees. We arrived by air at Bien Hoa, spent one night in a quarry guarding our equipment, then moved all our stuff to the site—–the dredging had not provided enough fill to start our work so we commuted daily from the Hotel Metropole in Saigon in a small gray bus with chain link over the windows. This lasted about ten days before we mustered one morning and were told to pack our personal stuff for a permanent move to the site. Our EO Jim Graben, I think, graded a pad for our first three hooches built on the first day and we continued to expand to build our new digs.
During our stay we played a softball game against a small Army protection detail at the end of the bridge; years later I ran into a guy in Kentucky who was on the Army team. Post-game we had dehydrated steaks and lots of beer and the next day our field of play got covered with additional hooches. When we had enough housing for the brown water sailors and enough docking space, LST 821 pulled out leaving a big gap in the river and we were on our own!!!
When Colonel Hackworth published his book “Steel My Soldiers Hearts” he mentioned our small group so I emailed him and he actually replied pointing out that he thought we were all nuts sitting there in the middle of a large bull’s eye surrounded by the bad guys—he also added that he had his eye on us constantly.
My stay there was about three months and the original Seabees moved out as the large detail moved in. If the Name Graben is correct, I would like to hear from him if anyone knows him.
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Thank you for the information. Was in contact with a Steel worker who was also there he had some great info also. Lives in Florida now.
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great you remember so much. do you remember a steel worker named Robert Reagan . I was in contact with him last year but sad to say he was having a lot of problems with his heart have not heard back from him in over three months . this is his E mail he also lives in florida ” reaganre@hotmail.com .
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If I remember correctly the EO’s name was Graber not Graben. I can’t be sure that he was the one with us in Ben Luc but I do remember that we had a Graber in the battalion at that time. I spent a lot of time down there at two other camps ( Tra Cu and Tui Non)up river building bunkers.
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Chief, do you remember working there with a BUH named Fred Goundrey?
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Yep Fred I do remember working with you. I also remember you and I going to the base package store and buying 5 or 6 cases of beer for the two of us over the weekend. Lord those were good times. I was an EMFN (didn’t become an SW until after A school) at that time and I believe you were a A SWCA or CN. We did Party!
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e3 DCM repaired PBR gun boats spent 9 after the Cb’s
completed the base had a couple perimeter towers with
machine guns and grenade launchers for protection lot of memories form BenLuc some good some not so good.
John Marcario
Sandy Utah send me a text 801-554-0927
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I was one the electricians on that project and went on mini det . past Tan An and Tuey NaN to help build bunkers at an old French outpost being used by the brown water guys. Have no real idea where that outpost was?
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Bobby,
I’m Fred Goundrey. I was one of the BUs that came down to Ben Luc with the pre-cut materials for the majority of the wood structures such as the SEA huts, mess hall, etc. Can’t recall when I got there they were still dredging out of the river and the revetments were not completed. At the end (as I recall) we started back North and I was part of a small group that went by LST (troop?) up the river to work on a chain link fence job to stop rockets directed at some of the Brown Water Sailors on one of the rivers. Don’t know where, thought we might have gone into the Parrots Beak but no way to know. We had a “fighting cock” named Rojo that someone brought along. The morning we left the only thing the mess cooks could give us was a BIG pot of hard boiled eggs. Might you and I have been together?
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Hi Gerald, My name is Bob Finney UT3. I was on the detachment to Ben Luc Had to keep patching the main water bladder. I still keep in touch with some of my Seabee pals. Dave Gentile. Doc Christensen , O.J. Ojeda. and Mike Matthews (deceased). Took a fishing trip with Doc and Dave on lake Michigan. We had a great time. but we did not catch any fish, we are going to try again soon. I salute all seabees past, present and future.
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Great to hear from you. I think I remember some of the names . My E mail is “bes59hub@yahoo.com” I just took a look i usually dont get any replys first time i looked in months. getting old i guess.
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I remember Finney, Ojeda and Matthews but not the other 2. Of course it was 51 years ago. I don’t believe my memory goes back that far. 😏
BobR
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Saw a real familiar name mentioned in Finney’s post. I caught the name Gentile—-I am quite sure he was one of the few Seabees in the first group to start the Ben Luc project. As I completed my duties earlier in the day I usually was assigned to or found something to do helping the other guys. I joined up with Dave Gentile as his “apprentice” cutting and threading galvanized pipe while he installed it and created the first shower and hand faucets on the site.
EA2 Steve Wagner
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I gotta bookmark this web site it seems very helpful invaluable
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Hey! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would be okay. I’m absolutely enjoying your blog and look forward to new posts.
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