Memories of a time of intense conflict and efforts to restore the old ferry landing.

Upon touching a body washed ashore along the Ben Hai River, militiawoman Nguyen Thi Ly involuntarily spoke. After speaking, the young girl from Co My village, struggling to hold back tears, knelt down and used her frail hands to pull the soldier's body to higher ground before the "team carrying the fallen soldiers" arrived.

More than 50 years have passed, but the poignant memories of the fiery times of the army and people of Vinh Linh still keep recurring in Mrs. Ly's mind. For decades, her eyes still well up with tears whenever someone mentions the ferry crossing that once transported wounded soldiers and martyrs…

The work of the "martyrs' team" usually starts quite late. According to the assignment, the task of transporting the wounded is handled by residents of the Tan Son, Tan My, Co My, and Di Loan areas. The ferry terminal is manned by three operational platoons. Operations are carried out meticulously according to each route, location, and area.

Around 7 or 8 p.m., the entire team quietly made their way down the Ben Hai River from their checkpoints. On the shore, ammunition and supplies were also ready. Soon after, the small boat was fully loaded. The rim of the boat sank down, leaving only about half a handspan above the water's surface. With its cargo full, the boat rocked and swayed, heading towards Gio Linh.

That was the outward journey, but on the return trip from Wharf C, the boat also had to carry wounded soldiers and fallen heroes from the southern bank. Their bodies were also gathered at secret points along the river near Bach Chu village (Gio Linh) before being placed on the boat for the return journey. On a favorable day, it only took about ten minutes for the boat to reach the Vinh Linh bank.

At this moment, receiving the signal, the groups carrying the wounded and the bodies from the areas of Tan Son, Tan My, Co My, Di Loan… rushed out to meet them. No one was allowed to turn on a light, no one was allowed to speak loudly. Only the sound of footsteps on the soft mud could be heard, occasionally interspersed with mournful sighs.

“ Everything was done in absolute secrecy. The team members rushed from one trip to the next. Every night, we had 12 shifts. The workforce consisted of 10 militiamen who took turns carrying the bodies. Every two people would carry one fallen soldier or wounded soldier back across the C ferry crossing. Yet, on many days, the ferry crossing was overloaded, ” Mrs. Ly recounted, her eyes fixed on the distant riverbank.

Wounded soldiers were taken to nearby platoon camps for treatment. As for the fallen soldiers, they had to be carried to a large gravel area in Vinh Thach commune for temporary burial. At times, the area was overloaded, and Mrs. Ly's group had to take turns carrying the soldiers to nearby cemeteries to complete the final procedures.

More fortunate 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 recoilless rifle squad safely returned to their hometown after the Cua Viet-Dong Ha naval battle – a return he called a "miracle." Although not directly involved in operations at Ferry Crossing C, Mr. Anh also has unforgettable memories of this place, having to go without food for two days while waiting for the opportunity to cross the river to the north bank via the Martyrs' Ferry Crossing.

“That day, the Americans were shelling very intensely around the demarcation line. We were supposed to return to the north bank via ferry terminal B, but because the Tung Luat terminal had many people coming and going, and we were afraid of being discovered, the leadership assigned the whole team to go by boat from terminal C,” he recalled.

While waiting for the opportune moment to cross the river, the troops were instructed to hide deep in the bushes between Bach Loc and Xuan My (now Trung Hai commune, Gio Linh district). This area was overgrown with vegetation and not too far from the boat assembly point. Mr. Vo Te, who rowed the boat at ferry landing C at the time, warned: " Whatever you do, you absolutely must not reveal yourselves. Even cooking is forbidden because it will reveal your position ."

“After many nights of starvation and continuous fighting, my stomach was rumbling terribly. My comrades and I decided to go to the riverbank to look for fish that had surfaced due to the pressure of the bombs to eat. Just as we reached the muddy edge, we suddenly saw two bodies of our soldiers floating on the river. Their blood stained the water's surface. In an instant, everyone fell silent,” Mr. Ánh’s voice choked and broke as he recounted the old story.

Taking a deep breath, he continued: “My comrades and I tried to swim down, but the enemy above dropped flares and fired continuously. Any action would have meant death and would have revealed our squad’s position. Though heartbroken, we had no choice but to watch helplessly as our comrades drifted away.”

Many years later, Mr. Ánh still cannot forget the sad events by the border river that day. He has missed many opportunities to "hold his comrades' hands one last time" to bring them home.

“Now, the C ferry crossing has been filled in, few remember it, and few talk about the old days. But the days of carrying the bodies of my comrades across the ferry remain the most unforgettable memories of my life,” Mrs. Nguyen Thi Ly said with a touch of sadness…

Over the years, the province has invested in and restored many historical and cultural relics. To date, the locality has more than 500 relics that have been recognized as provincial-level relics. The system of historical relics in Quang Tri largely consists of sites marking historical events during wartime.

According to Le Minh Tuan, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Tri province: Although the province has paid special attention to the restoration and preservation of these relics, due to limited resources, some historical relics have not yet been restored or renovated, including Luu Ferry Terminal (Ferry Terminal C).

“The Luỹ Ferry Terminal (Ferry Terminal C) in Vinh Giang commune, Vinh Linh district, is one of six component sites of the Hien Luong-Ben Hai National Special Monument, ranked according to Decision No. 2383/QD-TTg dated December 9, 2013, of the Prime Minister . Currently, among these component sites, investment in restoration and preservation has only focused on a few points of great historical significance to the province, especially the area along the banks of the Hien Luong bridge, and then the Tung Luat Ferry Terminal (Ferry Terminal B),” Mr. Le Minh Tuan informed.

With determination and effort in preserving, protecting, and promoting the value of historical relics, Mr. Le Minh Tuan stated that the responsibilities of Party committees and local authorities will be further strengthened, and coordination between local state management agencies and political, social, and mass organizations will be enhanced to effectively carry out the work of restoring and preventing the degradation of the historical and cultural relic system. At the same time, the work of preserving relics will be linked to sustainable tourism development; and activities to promote and introduce the land, people, and culture of Quang Tri to provinces and cities nationwide and to international friends will be intensified.

Furthermore, the cultural sector will focus all resources, including support from the central government, local budgets, and social contributions, to adequately invest in the preservation and promotion of the value of historical relics. This will create unique and distinctive tourism products for Vinh Linh district, contributing to the development of tourism as a key economic sector of the district.

According to Le Minh Tuan, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Tri province, 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 as many original elements as possible of the relics. In addition, it is important to guide the spatial structure, landscape and other typical values ​​of the relics.

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

Upon learning that we were trying to document the historical events at Ferry Crossing C, the Party Secretary and Chairman of the People's Council of Vinh Giang Commune, Nguyen Van An, painstakingly searched for officially recorded documents in the book "History of the Commune Party Committee" that the authors had introduced earlier. He also kindly directed us to visit the commune's martyrs' cemetery. This is not only the first martyrs' cemetery in the entire Vinh Linh district but also one of the gathering and burial points for martyrs brought from the legendary Ferry Crossing C.

Despite numerous restorations, one side of the stele remains in its original state, riddled with bullet and bomb marks imprinted on the old brick surface.

Within the spacious, neatly planned grounds stands a prominent 16.1-meter-high monument commemorating the nation's heroes. With its striking height, the monument once served as a "landmark" for enemy shelling of the northern bank. Despite numerous restorations, one side of the monument remains intact, bearing the marks of bombs and bullets etched into the old brickwork. Between the cracks, a sturdy Bodhi tree has sprouted, reaching high to bask in the sunlight today.

The youngest reporter in the group silently clasped her hands before the rows of graves, murmuring a prayer. At its peak, the Vinh Giang commune cemetery housed over 2,000 martyrs. Currently, it is the resting place of 534 martyrs, of whom only 374 have been identified. They came from various localities across the northern provinces.

Nguyen Van An, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the People's Council of Vinh Giang commune, lamented: "After the war, some areas recovered economically very quickly, but the preservation of historical relics also faced many difficulties. As time passed, many witnesses who knew about the existence of the C ferry crossing are no longer alive, and only a few people still mention it. While these elders are still alive, we need to thoroughly exploit their information. Because they are the 'living' documents who understand the story of the war 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