We owe a lot to Charles for keeping this bit of the history of the Army Divers in Vietnam alive.

This is the original unedited version.

Charles was one of the first Vietnam Army Divers I located through my early Facebook Group. When we talked, he told me when he got to Vietnam, the 536th didn’t even have any dive gear — that blew me away.

Then, when I hooked up with my lost diver brothers at the Army Divers Association reunion, Dana Storts told me that he had experience a similar situation. When he got to the MMAV Dive Unit in Cam Ranh Bay in 1967, — it was the same thing.

Over my research, I would hear similar stories, and others, about divers showing up in Vietnam and getting assigned to non-engineering units that didn’t even have diving slots.

These stories, and more, will find their way to the Delta Divers Project.

Here’s the unedited story Charles sent to me. We’ll be braking it down into various segments that will appear on the website.

After all, thats what the Delta Diver Project is all about. Making our readers and members a part of the story/

Company, 84th Engineer Battalion (C)

History of the 536th Engineer Detachment (Port Construction) Salvage Diving Team, from March 1970 to mid-March 1971

The 536th Engineer Detachment was attached to B Company of the 84th Engineer Battalion, stationed at Camp Smith. Camp Smith was located a few miles from LZ English, base camp of the famous 173rd Airborne Brigade. The 536th Engineer Detachment and B Company of the 84th Engineer Battalion was assigned the building of the Bong Son Bridge which was to replace the outdated French bridge crossing the Song Lai Giang River on QL-1, Binh Dinh Province, II Corp, Republic of Viet Nam. The complete unit genealogy is as follows: 536th Engineer Detachment (PC) attached to B Company, 84th Engineer Battalion (Construction), 937th Engineer Group (Combat), 18th Engineer Brigade, United States Army.

The Bong Son Bridge was a massive structure, made up of steel and concrete. The steel pilings were driven deep into the earth by pile drivers. The steel spans were welded together and the reinforced concrete slabs were then welded to the steel spans. The Bong Son Bridge was an Army Engineer Show Case project designed to improve and facilitate travel along QL-1, the main North – South highway on the coast of Viet Nam.

The reason that divers were assigned to the 536th was due to the fact that the detachment specialty was as a Port Construction designation and this implies the likelihood of needing soldiers trained in the appropriate skills to complete underwater tasks that may be required to complete the mission. The 536th primarily provided the welders, the pile drivers, and crane operators for this construction project.

At the time, all army divers were trained in both underwater and above water welding as a subspecialty that went along with the primary Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) of 00B30 –Underwater Diver.

B Company of the 84th Engineer Battalion was responsible for providing the logistics for the project as well as transportation of the material utilized in the construction of the bridge, which would include the steel girders, steel spans, reinforced concrete slabs, etc.

Operational security was provided by a garrison of seldom seen ARVN troops stationed across the river at the town of Bong Son and rotating squads of Sky Troopers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade. The 173rd provided some bridge security while we were responsible our own perimeter security. Needless to say that Camp Smith was under the protective umbrella of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, and its awesome firepower, which include Artillery and Air Support via helicopter gunships stationed at LZ English, located just a few miles to the south.

The original diver to be assigned to the 536th Engineer Detachment were Specialist 4th Class (E-4) Robert Dirk Hurchalla and was rated as a US Navy trained Diver 2nd Class, having graduated from the Navy Diego, California.

He arrived in Viet Nam and was assigned to the 536th approximately January 1970. Spec. 4 Hurchalla was utilized as a welder with the night crew for about 3 months. During this time, he did not draw diving pay since there was no active diving team in place with the 536th.

Approximately 2 ½ to 3 months after the arrival of Spec. 4 Hurchalla, Spec. 4 James Anderson, also a USN trained 2nd Class Diver was assigned to the 536th and he too volunteered and was assigned to the night welding crew. Prior to being assigned to the 536th, Anderson’s duty station had been with the 73rd Transportation Company out of Ft. Eustis, Virginia. The 73rd Transportation Company was a pre/post-deployment, stateside unit for Army Divers, likely those on orders or even awaiting orders for assignment to units already active in Vietnam and maintained a fairly large diving section. The primary mission for the 73rd was maintaining an active fleet of tug boats and flat bottom boats used to transport materials to the troops. These boats were able to maneuver in relatively shallow water and were in very common use throughout the Republic of Vietnam. The 73rd Transportation was a sort of a holding pen if you will for army divers either going to Vietnam or coming back from overseas duty, most likely Vietnam.

I joined the 536th about a week or so after Anderson came aboard. I too volunteered and was assigned to the night crew of welders. I came in as a Specialist 5th Class (Spec. 5) (E-5) and certified as a US Navy trained Deep Sea Diver 2nd Class and an Army Salvage Diver, having recently graduated with the first class of 12 divers trained at the US Army Salvage Diver Course at Ft. Eustis, Virginia, during the Vietnam Era. My Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) rank and my Salvage Diver rate made me the senior diver, but as yet, we had no operational diving team.

Upon my arrival to the 536th, and reuniting with both Hurchalla and Anderson, we decided to approach our Commanding Officer, 1st Lt. Wayne Hull about establishing a formal Diving Section/Team for the 536th. Initially he was somewhat reluctant, largely because he needed welders more than he needed divers but we were not deterred. It was our understanding that the MOS 00B30 (Diver) was in critical short supply, which was why the US Army had recently reactivated the Salvage Diver School at Ft. Eustis. The last army divers trained at Eustis were during Korean Conflict/War and the diving school had been deactivated after resolution of that conflict. We also knew that the Army was still sending soldiers to the US Navy Diving School in San Diego and we wanted to work in the area of our expertise, which was that of underwater specialists/divers, even though we were cross-trained in a number of sub-specialties. The three of us decided that we would submit a formal request for transfer, to any unit that would utilize us in our primary specialty. We explained to our CO that we surely didn’t mind helping complete our unit’s mission but we felt strongly about working in the underwater field as divers, not to mention that lots of money, time and effort had been expended by the taxpayers in training us and we wanted to make sure that the government’s money was well spent. Underwater work was really our first love and we weren’t about to give it up to be measly topside welders. 1st Lt. Hull was a fine CO and was able to see our point, he consented to assist us in organizing and forming the 536th Engineer Detachment Diving Team.
We were granted access to the Storage Conex containing TO&E diving equipment assigned to the 536th. The three of us went through the equipment, taking a thorough inventory. In a sense, it was like Christmas and all of us were excited all the brand new equipment at our disposal. All of this was done during our time off, in other words, we worked our normal shift, welded on the bridge at night and labored at setting up our diving team during the day.

What we found in the diving Conex astonished us; all the equipment was brand new. We found two shiny new Mark 5 diving helmets, for deep sea diving along with the weight belts, weighted boots, air hoses, rubberized canvas diving suits and air/communication hoses and lines. We also had two new sets of Shallow Water Diving gear which included a Jack Brown diving mask and soft sided air hoses. There were no SCUBA tanks, regulators, wet suits, diving masks or fins. Most importantly, there was no air compressor, which would supply the air needed for any underwater task that we might be assigned to. It was looking like we were destined to be full time welders at that point but part of the makeup of divers was resourcefulness. Our countless hours of combined training with both the Navy and the Army instilled in us both the “Can Do” and “Never Quit” attitude. There was a solution to our “no air compressor” dilemma but one that could be dangerous. We approached out CO with the notion of using industrial grade Oxygen, which was used for cutting steel with oxy-acetelene torches. We had an unlimited Oxygen supply of due to the steel bridge building mission of the 536th. We advised him that we could rig the shallow water gear and use O2 as our primary air supply. Of course the three of us knew that breathing relatively pure Oxygen is safe as long as the depth of 30 feet is not exceeded. Beyond 30 feet, O2 is toxic and can be fatal if breathed for any length of time. It all has to do with what O2 under pressure does to the body’s normal gas exchange physiology between CO2 and O2. Part of our dilemma was that we didn’t have a depth gage to keep us in the safe zone but we all agreed that we would dive by “dead reckoning” just as pilots fly without the use of instrumentation, and moreover, fly by the seat of their pants. Just like them, we would be diving by the seat of our pants just as well and with the help of our diver tenders, would stay above the safety limitations of no deeper than 30 ft.

We welded on the bridge at night and worked during the day to get our diving gear ready, for when that first anticipated call came through. We slept when we could but sleep at that point was not our priority. 1st Lt. Hull and his successor 1st Lt. Dave Meyers were true to their word, they put out the word that the 536th had an operational diving team and slowly, requests for divers begin to come in. Our first dive job was for our parent unit, the headquarters of the 937th Combat Engineer Group in Qui Nhon. There was some sort of problem with their fresh water pump/float combination in their outdoor fresh water reservoir. It could best be described as a middle sized pond or large mud puddle with nasty looking freshwater and was about 10-12 feet deep. Supposedly, somewhere in the pond, there was an alligator, but we never saw it. A large lizard, similar to an iguana was more likely but again, we never confirmed that notion visually. The three of us, along with our shallow water dive gear and 2 large green bottles of Oxygen, were flown to Qui Nhon by helicopter. In short order, we set up our gear, got in the water and took care of the problem. We were an instant hit at headquarters since they had been having the same problem for some time and no one was willing to get in the yellowish looking and foul smelling water before we showed up. Our consolation was that we didn’t have to drink the water, we just had to dive in it but we were glad to do it. This initial dive served as our qualification dive in order to receive our dive pay which amounted to an extra $65 for me, being that I was Salvage Diver qualified and an extra $55 for Anderson and Hurchalla, being that they were 2nd Class Diver qualified. More importantly, this first dive set us up as an operational dive team with three divers ready and willing to do whatever the US Army needed doing underwater. The fact that we performed for our Headquarters unit and their recommendations helped secure additional diving assignments for our budding Army Diving Team.

For the next several months, all diving operations were completed utilizing the same format. Shallow water gear and our large green O2 bottles containing our air supply along with the ropes/ hoses and Jack Brown Shallow Water diving masks we found in the diving conex.

The Bong Son Bridge was completed in around October of 1970. The 536th was transferred to Da Nang.

Upon our arrival in Da Nang, our diving operations began to come in more frequently, as word spread that the 536th had divers. We were either trucked or flown in by helicopter and our jobs varied widely, mostly we were involved with underwater repair, pier and piling inspections, bridge demolitions using C-4 plastic explosives and underwater search and recovery. We also assisted in wooden bridge construction and moving the creosote laden wooden pilings around in the water and positioning them, prior to them being driven into the bottom of the river. None of us cared for the wooden bridge construction, largely because of the creosote coating that was applied to the wooden pilings. The creosote was a form of petroleum based preservative for the wooden logs and building timbers. All said, it was nasty work and swimming in creosote was never our favorite type of diving, but we endured, never complained and treated our burned faces as best we could. The rivers we dove in on those projects were usually pretty foul, laden with debris, and submerged concertina wire and all of this was made worse by the tar and creosote floating on the surface of the water as we maneuvered the wooden pilings into position. Creosote is a caustic solution, infused into the wooden timbers and long pilings and our job was to maneuver them into place, in the water and all the while getting an unhealthy dose of foul creosote/oil mix all over, head to toe. The water was typically brackish, being fresh water mixed with incoming ocean water. We dove with sea snakes, stinging jelly fish and decomposing human bodies and who knows what else.

About November 1970, after our reassignment to Da Nang our Diving Team added three new members. We were joined by Spec. 5 Charles Armstrong, Salvage Diver, a Florida Diver named Davis and Spec. 5 Bill Coker, also Salvage Diver qualified. All three were recent graduates of the US Army Salvage School, Ft. Eustis, Virginia. Davis turned out to be a fair weather diver that didn’t care for diving in inclement weather or the hazardous diving conditions that were an everyday occurrence for us. He was later reassigned to the motor pool and removed from dive status. Armstrong and Coker on the other hand, took to diving and our style of diving with gusto. They were both awesome divers, both hailed from the great state of California, just as Bob Hurchalla. Jim Anderson was originally from Kankakee, Illinois and I came from the high desert country of Northern New Mexico.

The arrival of Charles Armstrong was especially welcomed. He had the foresight to bring with him, his own personal wet suit, and not relying on the goodness of the Army to provide. Armstrong was a superb diver who graciously and willingly shared the use of his wet suit with his teammates. I’ll never forget him for that, nor can I thank him enough.

Da Nang was a most welcome change for us as well as for expanded diving operations. Being close to the ocean brought many more opportunities for diving. We also got to know our US Navy counterparts as well as the Aussie Divers of The Royal Australian Navy Harbor Clearance Team 3. They were the experts at underwater explosive ordinance disposal and we were very happy to know them, as well as work with them. They were stationed at nearby Camp Tien Shau.

Our most significant diving operation to date occurred after the arrival of the FNG’s, (Fantastic New Guys) and during the month of November. We were put on alert and told to get our equipment ready. We were told to report to the helicopter pad, with all our gear which included our jerry rigged diving gear with O2 bottles. Hurchalla always had is M-79 grenade launcher in his hands or on his lap, and never out of reach, while the rest of us carried standard issue military M-16’s. We were transported by Huey and dropped off on a deserted beach, near Tan My, north of Da Nang and right on the shores of the South China Sea. We were east of Hue and close to Camp Eagle, home of the 101st Airborne Division. We, along with our equipment were off loaded, along with a case of C-rations and some water but nary a word from the pilots as we all stared at what appeared to be a huge flat bottomed boat turned upside down and settled down at the breaker line, in very heavy surf. Depending on the tides, the breaker line could be 50 to 100 yards of dangerous and treacherous surf. We were a mite puzzled, not knowing what we were to do. In a sense, we were told to get our gear ready, get on the helicopter and get off the helicopter and not much else. There was no way 6 army divers with shallow water diving gear, 3 bottles of O2, one communal wet suit and one case of C rats (rations) were going to put a dent into a huge boat, more like a small ship, turned upside down, and at least 50 yards or more out in the breaker line and pounding surf. The surf was indeed pounding and even just swimming out to the boat proved to be a challenge, even for seasoned swimmers. Our questions were answered in less than an hour when it seemed that the entire world arrived on scene. The Royal Australian Clearance Diving Team 3 (UDT/EOD) lead by Lt. Jake Linton arrived and was put in charge of the Salvage Operation of YFU 63, which had somehow overturned and capsized overnight. We were told that a rogue wave, somewhat common during typhoon season was deemed the cause of this mishap but nobody was certain. We did know that there was a crew of 12 American soldiers supposedly on board and our primary mission was to rescue anyone trapped inside the crew’s quarters and/or recover the bodies. Secondarily and the reason why the Australian team was in place was for the fact that LCU 63 had been carrying 150 tons of White Phosphorus artillery shells destined for the 101st Airborne Brigade at Camp Eagle when she capsized. We along with the Aussie divers and the Navy support element were on station for most of November. The army role was to provide on hand support and additional divers as needed. We brought virtually no equipment to lend a hand with but we provided 6 bodies, ready, willing and able to assist in any capacity Lt. Linton required. The logistical support was provided by the USN Diving Section out of Camp Tien Shau, Da Nang Naval Support Facility. There were also several capable USN divers that joined in the operation. Unfortunately, due to the extremely difficult conditions (typhoon season) it was not possible to salvage the ship. We did however gain entry in to the hold and main compartment but no bodies were found. Security for this operation was provided by 2 squads of Airborne/Infantry troopers from the 101st. We received sporadic sniper fire and thankfully, no one was killed or wounded during our time on this remote stretch of beach.

The Tan My operation was a major turning point for the 536th diving team. This had been our first real opportunity to work side by side with other divers and other diving units (USN and Royal Australian). Because of our eagerness and enthusiasm, we made a very favorable impression on both the Australian CO and the US Navy XO in charge of logistics. What we lacked in equipment, we more than made up for in willingness and enthusiasm. Working and associating with the Aussie’s was a great honor, a privilege and a pleasure. The USN second in command of the operation was WO Norton and I remain grateful to him and his willingness to help fellow divers out, even though we were from a separate branch of service. He extended an open door policy to us, unofficially of course. He told us that he couldn’t give us any equipment out right, because he had to account for all his dive gear but he told us that we had free access to his dive supply parts room. It was like Christmas, which it really was or at least just after Thanksgiving. We gathered enough parts to assemble four sets of double hose regulators (know how was supplied by the Army Salvage Divers Course), and several sets of twin 90 SCUBA bottles, weight belts, diving knives and UDT Life vests. We were really in business with all our newly assembled diving equipment, however, still no wet suits! I have to add that the training we received at Eustis was invaluable and allowed us to assemble all our new found dive gear, some of which can be pretty technical and it must be said that it was paramount that every washer or spring had to be just right, after all our lives would be riding on our ability to get every piece in the right spot and adjusted so everything worked as intended. We were a pretty knowledgeable and resourceful group. An example of this was when Anderson and Armstrong came across an air compressor initially used to fill fire extinguishers and we were able to convert it into our back up compressor which we used to fill our SCUBA bottles, not to full capacity but rendered enough air supply to at least be somewhat operational. Converting the fire extinguisher compressor into a dive compressor was no simple or small task. The most critical component was the air filtration, since any amount of oil or petroleum compound that might find its way into the air supply would contaminate the air breathed by the diver and quite possibly cause severe lung damage and a possible fatal reaction, especially underwater because of the highly compressed air we needed to breath at deeper depths. Anderson loved to tinker and was also able to make up a set of low PSI SCUBA bottles out of two fire extinguisher tanks. We used the same valves used for the twin 90’s we acquired from the Navy dive supply. We used Anderson’s bottles for small diving jobs that required very limited underwater time. Our SCUBA bottles were usually filled at the US Navy Diving Section at Camp Tien Shaw, since we didn’t have our own full size air compressor. In other words, we made do with what we could scrounge at the time. I’m sure that the Army wouldn’t like to hear what I said, but it is the truth.

The addition of our new found and acquired diving equipment expanded our dive capabilities and our enthusiasm was at a high point at that time.

At about the same time, Hurchalla’s tour was completed and he rotated back to the States, and to his wife and his new born son, Chad.

By this point, there were 4 divers left in the 536th. Myself as team leader, Jim Anderson, Chuck Armstrong and Bill Coker. We were as tight a team as they come. The new guys took to our team and our teams mission like ducklings take to water.

The next major break occurred when we happened to run into WO Keck at the PX in Da Nang. Armstrong and Coker were off at one end when they saw the Master Diver Pin on WO Keck’s hat. They quickly came looking for Anderson and me. We wasted no time in locating this portly older gentleman. WO Keck was assigned to 1st Logistics Command, also stationed in Da Nang. He told us that he had been trying to locate us and that he knew we were somewhere in I Corp but that he didn’t know exactly where or with whom. He was like an angel sent from Heaven and at the very least, he was a great benefactor. Through him and his connections, we were able to pick up even more diving jobs, especially now that we had upgraded our diving equipment, although still lacking wet suits. Initially, he was in favor of acquiring a 4 wheel drive pick up truck for us, as our diving vehicle. I thought that was a great idea as I happen to like trucks. However, Armstrong, Anderson and Coker came up with the idea that we should ask (since he was offering), for an Ambulance instead of a truck and convert it to our own diving van. Keep in mind that Armstrong and Coker were previously California surfers before they opted to serve their country as Army Divers, recalling that Army Divers were never drafted but were “All Volunteers”. It sounded like a fine idea to me and Mr. Keck went along with the logic and utility of the idea of an enclosed vehicle, where our equipment was fairly secure and lockable. He was able to get us an ambulance and it didn’t take long to turn it into our own four wheel drive, OD green diving van. We painted over the Red Cross and painted a huge white diving helmet with the words “US Army Underwater Diving Team, along with our unit…536th Engineer Detachment (PC). It held our bottles, regulators, weights, ropes and spare changes of uniform tops that we needed to get into the Navy or Air Force mess hall, depending on where we were at the time.

One time, a newly assigned 1st Sergeant accused us of slacking and was giving us a hard time, since we were no longer involved with the current mission of the 536th. In fact, I don’t even recall what it was at the time, of course we were too busy diving. Ours was official business mostly and an occasional run to a few top secret coves to replenish our supply of fresh lobsters. Lobsters and beer, the staple of Army Divers is what we used to say. Anyway, the new top sergeant did not like that we pretty much had free reign and he wanted to put a stop to it. We solved that problem by inviting him to be an honorary diver and that he should accompany us on some or our jobs, just so that he could see what we did and if he was going to be an “honorary” diver, he had to get his hands wet. He enthusiastically agreed and after a day of lugging around SCUBA bottles weighing upwards of 100 pounds per pair, weight belts, ropes and all the other gear, as well as our personal weapons and at least 8 to 10 magazines, each holding 20 rounds of 5.56 mm ammo, held in two cloth bandoliers for each weapon. It didn’t take long for our First Sergeant to decide to let us do what we had to do, and that he wanted no part of being an honorary diver, after all, there was just a lot of hard work so with that he gladly let us go about our business. Army life was good!

Tet of 1971 brought an interesting diving job. The giant oil resupply tankers were not able to off load the JP4 used by the jets and helicopters due to the fact that the flex-hoses and end valves that they used to hook up to were tangled at the bottom of Da Nang Harbor. WO Keck alerted our CO and we were on our way to Da Nang Harbor early the next day. Our convoy was guarded by armored trucks at our front and rear and gunships flying overhead. All of Da Nang was on full alert; MACV had predicted another NVA led attack across all of Viet Nam, similar in magnitude to the brutal Tet of 68. Our mission was deemed critical, since helicopters and jets all need JP4 and we needed to make sure that the supply lines were kept flowing and operational. Mr. Keck was in charge of this operation and he explained that we would be doing bounce dives all day long for as many days as we need to get the job done. We would be diving in alternating teams of two divers. Water depth was between 95 and 100 feet and deeper in some places. Bottom time would be 5 to 10 minutes on each dive, in order to minimize decompression requirements. Visibility would be absolute zero and darker than any of us could imagine. Currents could be strong at the bottom and the surface was very choppy due to the windy conditions. Our job was to descend along the buoy lines, figure out which 10 inch diameter flex hose was where and in what direction it had to be moved. We would then resurface, relay that information to WO Keck and he would instruct the tugboat captain with regards to the direction needed to untangle that particular segment of hose. The buoy line was attached to the tug and the tug would reposition the hose. By then, we would be hauled aboard and the next dive team would make ready to do the follow up dive for confirmation and reposition as needed. We did this over and over until all the lines were freed and untangled. It was on one of these dives that Bill Coker saved my life, or at least I give him credit for it. Somehow, the reserve value on my SCUBA tanks had been activated, without my knowledge. Perhaps from bumping around on the bottom of the harbor in zero visibility. Coker and I were already on the bottom and making our inspection when without warning, my air supply quit. I reached back behind my head to activate the reserve air supply and was quite shocked when I noted that it was in the wrong position, meaning no 3-5 minute reserve of precious air. I had half a breath of air, and 100 feet to the surface. I was strapped in and fully loaded with weight belts, web belt, knife, UDT life vest and long johns. It was Coker’s turn to wear the wet suit. I was already tired from fighting the currents and the cold water. Instantly, put a death grip on Coker’s hand, reached over and tapped him three times, where I don’t even know, signaling that I was in serious trouble. I wasn’t sure what the outcome of my appeal would be but I had to make some choices pretty quickly. Either I stay and hope he finds me and lets me have some of his air or I ditch my equipment and swim for all I was worth to the surface and hope I make it. It is amazing how things like this slow your thought processes down. It occurred to me that I actually didn’t want to ditch my equipment because that would leave us one set of tanks short and they were hard enough to come by but in retrospect, I never considered the possibility that if I didn’t make it to the surface, the team would be one diver short. It seems that I was more concerned for the equipment. On the other hand, I didn’t want to hang around on the bottom of Da Nang Harbor with no air. I sure wouldn’t last long doing that and wasting time contemplating it. I had to decide quickly and just as I reached for my quick release on my shoulder harness and let go of the death grip I had on Coker, so I could reach for the quick release on my weight belt with the other, I felt him groping around my face. I had already spit out my own mouth piece since it was no longer of any use to me. That was the first and only time in my life that I’ve been groped by another guy but I was glad of it. Training kicked in for both of us, and thank God for that! As soon as he got my signal or maybe the extra hard grip I had on his hand, he took a quick breath and was maneuvering his body so that we would be in the face to face position to perform the lifesaving buddy breathing technique we had become proficient in during dive training with the Navy and Army Dive schools. We would both share his air supply. When he didn’t find me right away, he quickly reinserted his mouthpiece and took in another quick breath. He found me on his second attempt and I was sure glad he did. We stayed in position long enough for us to settle down and regain our composure, at least mine. I gave the signal to initiate our ascent, while still buddy breathing. I would take two breaths, while he held his own and then reverse the order, as he took two breaths and I held my breath. Once we left the bottom, we slowly ascended to the surface without any difficulty, buddy breathing all the way. Upon arriving at the surface, the tug was several hundred yards away from us and unaware of the problems we encountered. Coker and I inflated our UDT life vests to give us added buoyancy and started our swim, against the current and through choppy breakers on the surface. That was a difficult swim and I about drowned for the second time in the span of about 10 minutes as I tried to catch my breath when a wave hit me square in the face as I was gulping for air. Only other divers would understand how difficult a task it is, to swim against the current while fully loaded with weight belts, twin 90 SCUBA bottles and other diving gear and try to catch up to the mother ship (harbor tug) that doesn’t have a clue about what is going on with the diver pair. In other words, we were supposed to be underwater and not on the surface swimming for all we were worth.

We accomplished the Da Nang Harbor Mission and the enemy attack of Tet 1971 never amounted to much but the F-4’s, the Cobra’s, the Huey’s, and the Chinook’s all had plenty of jet fuel. Thanks to the Waterborne Army Divers of the 536th.

My tour was completed mid March, my time in the Army and in Viet Nam was done.
Jim Anderson was promoted to Spec. 5 and signed on for an extension of an additional couple of months, seems he was having way too much fun! Chuck Armstrong and Bill Coker remained with the 536th.

In closing I’d like to say that we had an awesome diving team. Early on, I exhorted each team member that if we worked together and watched each others back, we would all make it back to the world. We received little recognition for what we did and what underwater jobs we accomplished, some critical and all hazardous. The Navy gave us a nice letter of commendation for our efforts at Tan My. Our own unit seldom ever knew what we did and I can’t blame them because we were seldom with our unit, especially after the 536th was reassigned to Camp Hoa Long in Da Nang. I gather none of us were looking for recognition. We just wanted to do our job, watch out for each other and make sure we left when it was our turn. We were fortunate that we did not have to endure the trauma of having lost a team mate to any diving accident or enemy action. We were not awarded any medals other then the standard ones everyone gets for having served in Viet Nam but I will say, that I am extremely proud of the work we did and am prouder still of each diver that served with the 536th Engineer Detachment Diving Team.

The ARMY has the AIRBORNE, the NAVY, the SEABEES and the 536th Engineer Detachment had the “WATERBORNE” Seahorses.
With the utmost respect and admiration for my teammates, Sp/5 Robert D. Hurchalla,

Sp/5 James Anderson, Sp/5 Charles Armstrong and Sp/5 William Coker.

Submitted by

SP/5 Charles Romero, Team Leader

US Army Underwater Salvage Diving Team

536th Engineer Detachment (Port Construction)

84th Engineer Detachment

937th Combat Engineer Group

18th Engineer Brigade

US Army
Republic of Vietnam 1970-1971