"Brave Thai Soldier"

It was late1974. By now I was probably psychologically immune to all of life's "Kicks in the teeth." Well this night was little or no different from the rest. Buddha, my partner, and I, just sittin back, feet propped up on the desk. Then, the "RED PHONE." Couple of casualties comin’ down from the North. Word had it that a couple of Thai Army had walked into a Claymore Mine that the VC or Pathet Lao had turned around during the night. Well we knew what to expect. Blown completely apart, or some severe traumatic amputations.

When the jeep got there, I could here the soldier's scream before even reaching the loading dock. Hell, at least he was alive. The other one was DOA. We got to the jeep, and there was blood flying in all directions. The soldier had lost both his legs from the thighs down. The guys who kept him alive from Laos to here, I thought, should have gotten a medal. We just grabbed arms and stumps, and got him to the gurney inside the ER. The Doc was waiting, and he was putting in the IV lines. I grabbed some sterile towels, and literally jumped on to the left thigh. The femur bone was jutting out, and I got a nice puncture right in the middle of my abdomen. I held him with my body on top of him. I was screaming for some thread and clamps, so I could start tying off bleeders. By this time the entire crew was blood soaked. We had a nurse pumpin’ blood to him, IVs were giving him much needed volume, due to severe blood loss. He finally passed out from shock. I remember sewing, tying, clamping at anything that oozed. We had an ET tube down, he had two chest tubes. The entire surgery crew was called in, and we slipped slided down the hall takin’ this mangled boy to the OR.

Well me and Buddha's job was done. We hadn't noticed, but three and a half hours had passed. We were blood-soaked and exhausted. At a time like this, the damnedest things are funny. Buddha looked at me, smiling, and said, "Well, wonder who's gonna clean this mess up?"... Well, we laughed and did what we were supposed to do. I went out on the backdock, and thought that I better get a "Box" ready. I thought for sure that this boy would be in the morgue before morning.

Well, the morning crew came in, and immediately told us to get the Hell out. We were still covered with blood, and God knows what else. I made a detour, and went down on the ward. I saw, much to my surprise, a half conscious soldier laying on the bed. He was groaning a little, and I could see it was him. I thought,"Well, I'll be a son of a bitch! He made it." I walked out the back of the hospital, turned onto the sidewalk, over the Klong and into the barracks. Right before I got undressed and gave my soiled uniform to one of the housegirls, I just looked at the Heavens and said, "Well, thankyou God." Or maybe I said, "Thankyou Buddha." I don't really remember. Cause over there, I think you had two guys on your side. I can see that boy's face in my dreams to this day. Maybe selfishly I'm thinking he is thanking us too.

"Babysan"

During the Monsoon, it is hard for all of us to see a hand in front of our faces.  Well this so happened to be one of the Staff Car Driver's problem one morning in Udorn, at the RTAFB.  I was on duty, gettin' ready to get off after a very busy 14hrs.  The Red phone rang, and whoever was on the other end, said that they were bringing a babysan in that was hit by a Staff Car.   "A Babysan?"  Heck, I had seen every wound know to man, I thought.   Panic hit me like a hammer.  I have done everything there is to do... 21/2 yrs in Neuro ICU, now ending my tour over here, and I don't know anything about babysans.

Well, in he came by SP jeep.  They handed him to me.  He was thrashing, vomiting, bleeding all over the place.  I carried him to a open gurney, and literally had to hold all four extremities down.  A fellow medic came to my aid.  I knew by his Neuro signs, and it was mach,mach, my dee.  The other medic looked at me and said, "Now What?"  "Well, lets get an airway, get some O2 to him, and hold him down.  Dr. Simpson, was just coming into the room.  Well, I won't repeat what he said.  I gave him the stats....Thrashing, pupils fixed and dilated, pulse was like a rabbit’s, and B/P was just barely audible.  He told me to get an IV line, using a butterfly needle.  God was with me, and I got it on the first try.  He said, "Pump some Dilantin in him, and try to get hold of those seizures."  I asked, "Uh, you know the dose on a baby?"...."No, airman, I don't, but give it in small doses."  He was busily trying to get an NG tube down.  Heck, we didn't even have that size.  But, hey, we were a "Can Do", kinda place.

Well one of the nurses came in.   "Oh God, its a baby!"  I repeated, "No Sh__!"  I asked her if she knew the doses for Dilantin on a baby??  Well, she informed me that she didn’t, but we kept on workin'.  My partner was holding the baby down, I was trying to tie off some bleeders, and the nurse was baggin' the baby, trying to keep him breathin'.

Well, the CO, was notified and came to the ER.  He asked a very interesting question.... "What in the Hell is a baby doin' here?"  Well , I thought what I wanted to say, but bit my tongue.  I informed this Col. Andrews, that we needed transportation to Bankok, or we were going to have to put this child in a bag.  Well he fumbled about, pacing, and said, "I will call someone to take this child to a big hospital."  God, he was brilliant.   Well, we held this baby and worked the best we could for SIX hours.  We all knew, who were standing there, that this child, if he made it, would be a vegetable in the end.  Well, after all that time, someone from the flightline came over, and the three of us, worked on this baby all the way to the flightline, where he was boarded on an aircraft to Bangkok.  We, never knew the outcome.

It continued to rain that day, and the three of us, shouted obscenities, cried, and got a ride back to the 432nd Hospital.  I don't know about the rest of my crew, but I didn't sleep.  I went back at 1630, and started all over again.  My thoughts were selfishly, not of the babysan.   I had maybe 10 days and a wakeup...."How did I get all this blood on me? Damn!.... God, please let it be an easy night"

"Date of Separation"

Wow!  The Water Festival!  How can a holiday such as the Thai's, get carried away, so out of porportion that the American GI can make it his own?  Thats our nature I guess.  Well, I was in the ER.  My partner that night, Ed Burdine - called him Buddah.  Hah!  Well, he was as big as Buddah anyway.   We had a malstrom of Water Festival calualities that day.  Severe eye infections, yeah, from Klong water, broken toes, from way too many drunk GIs, droppin Fire Estinguishers on their toes, lacerations from broken glass, guys with busted noses, hands, you name it, because of the fights that were the result of , "I got you first!"  Terrible day.  We could only think what the night would bring from the North.  What sort of God awful wounds would we see tonight?  Seems that Mine wounds were the last two nights, and you know, comes in threes.

Well during this nightmare of a Water Festival, a Senior NCO, came walking in, green in the gills, holding his stomach. "Hey Sarge, what can I do ya for?"  He just looked me in the eye, and said,,"Got any Paragoric?"   "Sure sir, just have a seat on the gurney, I keep this for the really sick ones."  He sat up on the gurney, and started giving me a history of the previous day and night.  He said, lots of nausea, diarrhea,  just felt like crap.   Well, I sure had heard that a million times.  I told him I would go and get his records, and be with him in a second.  I turned to go, just rounded the cornor, and I heard a big thud.  I looked around, and Sarge was on the floor.   Experience told me from the look, that this was not a viral thing.

He immediately went pale, and on to blue.  I quickly grabbed a bottle of 02, put a mask on him, screamed for Buddah, and started checking for pulses.   None, no breathing.  Oh God, hes had a Heart Attack, Buddah, grabbed the phone right away, and called the Doc, who was trying to catch up on some needed sleep.  I heard his footsteps come flying up the hall. Well, we performed CPR, while Buddah, was gettin the Heart drugs.  I could hear the dismay in the background, of drunk, hurting GIs, with their little problems, regarding their injuries from the day's partying.  I am a big guy, and I can be loud when I want.  I said, "All you guys, get out NOW!!!!"  Most knew me, so out they went to the dock outside.

We worked on that guy for 3hrs, we gave him every drug.  We had a nurse come up and draw blood for the oh so important tests.  Well, Sarge didn't make it.  When working on a patient like this, I usually had to be bodily pulled off.  Well this time was no different.  Sarge had passed.  I threw stuff around me in disgust.  I wept, along with the nurse and Doc.  I helped put him back on the gurney, and did the neverending cleaning of the patient.  Packing the orifices for his ride to the Philippines.

Well his Squadran Commander was called.  When he showed up, he was as shaken as I have ever seen a man.  "My God Doctor", he said.   "His DOS is tomorrow!"  I came to find out, this Senior MSGT, had extended for a couple of months, and his second DOS was in the AM.  He died on his last day.  There would be no "Wakeup."  I cursed my usual curses, took him out to the morgue, prayed for him, and went back up to the dock, amongst the crying, laughing, drunk GIs...... "Hey sarge give me somthing for this cut"..... "Hey sarge, what kinda dope ya got?"

What an absolute shitty day..........