VIETNAM CHRONICLES

CAPTAIN RICHARD L. KLOPPENBURG

SHORT STORIES FROM 1966-1967 IN VIETNAM

BELOW ARE SOME TRUE BUT UNTOLD STORIES
VIETNAM WAS THE GREAT ADVENTURE OF MY GENERATION

BAO LOC MACV

Sometime in 1966 the MACV compound got attacked at 3:00 in the morning. We had a fire engine siren mounted at house number one. When we were attacted the siren would sound the alarm. At that time we could hear the sounds of rifle fire. That means we should head outside to the sandbag bunker. Grab your steel pot, your flack vest, rifle and ammunition and head to your preassigned bunker. Because the route to the bunker was out the front door, you had to exit very quickly and quietly.

The Viet Cong could be watching and they would know that we would run out the front door.

The reason for taking your ammo with you, was because if you left the ammo in the bunker, in between the sandbags, small snakes also lived in that space. They were so small, that they could only bite you on the fingertip. If a pit viper, as they were called, would bite your fingertip, it could be very deadly. Note steel pot, rifle, and ammo below.