Immortal legends along the green Long Dai river

As the site of the first bomb dropped by the US Army during the escalating bombing campaign in the North from 1965 to 1972, Long Dai ferry was once known as the "blood coordinates" at the front line of the legendary Truong Son road.

On that hot "fire pan", there are stories that have become immortal symbols of patriotism, sacrifice and revolutionary optimism of our ancestors.

Late afternoon on a day in late September, veteran Vu The Huyen, 71 years old, stood silently under the pouring rain, staring at the monument shaped like 16 bundles of rice that were heavily blooming. After more than 50 years, he finally had the opportunity to return to the legendary Long Dai ferry, where 16 of his comrades had laid down their lives to keep the North-South route open.

In that moment, the fierce memories of the bomb bag and the Long Dai fire pan of the past came back to the soldier...

Panoramic view of the Memorial Area at Long Dai Ferry Terminal II

On the Long Dai "panhandle"

On the map, Long Dai is located on Route 15 - an important route connecting the Northern rear with the South, to support human and material resources for the battlefield. This is an important river crossing point leading to Truong Son, before food, provisions, and equipment are distributed throughout the front line.

According to People's Armed Forces Hero Major General Hoang Kien, former Commander of the Engineer Corps, Vice President of the Truong Son Tradition Association, because of its extremely key position, the Americans considered Long Dai a special "hot spot" that needed to be "strangled" at all costs.

“The Truong Son battlefield was like a pot. To get in, one had to pass through Long Dai ferry. If this river route was cut off, the entire battlefield inside would be blocked,” Major General Hoang Kien recalled.

Long Dai ferry terminal was once the place that endured tens of thousands of tons of bombs and bullets during the period 1965-1972. Photo: document

History later recorded: Long Dai was the place where the American enemy dropped the first bomb on the North and was also one of the key attack points in the next 7 years. The enemy bombarded Long Dai with both air force and navy with the most modern weapons at that time. Tens of thousands of tons of bombs and thousands of artillery shells were dropped on the river, turning this place into one of the most fierce "fire coordinates" in the entire Quang Binh strip.

Directly participating in the local militia force during this period, Ms. Phan Thi Diep (Truong Ninh commune) said that after more than 50 years, she still cannot forget the sound of planes rumbling in the sky and the sound of cluster bombs exploding non-stop for a whole week. There were many cases where our soldiers unfortunately had accidents on the river, and the female guerrillas rowed boats every night to look for them. There were also soldiers who, until the moment of their death, still leaned proudly on the artillery tray...

The old soldier revisits Long Dai ferry terminal II today

“After one night, when we woke up and felt safe, we realized we were still alive. However, none of us were afraid of sacrifice. People and soldiers from many regions still devoted themselves to their duties, with the spirit: If the car is not cleared, we will not regret the house; if the road is not cleared, we will not regret the blood and bones. The whole village mobilized each other, ready to dismantle houses and fill bomb craters for the army to move forward,” Ms. Diep recalled.

The enemy fought at night, civilians and soldiers ran in the morning and afternoon. As soon as the bombs stopped, young men and women in their twenties rushed out onto the streets to fight. With the fighting spirit of "determined to die for the Fatherland", the local forces firmly held their ground, "not moving an inch, not leaving an inch", determined to clear the ferry and hold the route.

There are deaths that turn into immortality

By early 1971, to reduce losses, Long Dai was split into two branches: Ferry I near the bridge and Ferry II about 500m downstream. At the same time, a company of Nghe An province's youth volunteers was mobilized to stand guard with the engineering troops at Ferry II to ensure the ferry's smooth operation.

Veteran Nguyen Van Phung, who “stayed” with Truong Ninh after the victory day, could not forget the pain of the summer of 1972 in this “lately born” place. That was early in the morning of July 16, as usual, the group of Nghe An province’s youth volunteers gathered, saluted the flag and sang the national anthem before going out on the street to perform their duties. Suddenly, a series of bombs fell, causing the entire Long Dai village to be engulfed in flames. The row of houses where the brothers and sisters lived caught fire, leaving all 15 young hearts forever in the motherland.

Despite the changes, Long Dai ferry terminal II still carries within it heroic memories of 53 years ago.

Having said that, the old soldier fell silent. In an instant, painful memories rushed back, etching their way into his wrinkled face, streaked with the years. During the 7 years of fiery war, the small strip of land along the Truong Son road had been writhing in bombs and bullets, when a person’s breath was counted in seconds.

Back in the spring of 1971. In April of the same year, from the rice fields of Thai Binh (now Hung Yen province), the young man Vu The Huyen, then not yet twenty years old, along with 134 other young men of the same age, shouldered their backpacks and set off to join the Youth Volunteer Force. Their destination was Quang Binh. The company, codenamed C130, of Battalion 2, Division 571, was tasked with clearing the road and ensuring smooth traffic for the vehicles supplying aid to the battlefield. In mid-1972, the entire company was transferred to Long Dai ferry terminal II to replace the Youth Volunteer Force unit of Nghe An province that had suffered heavy losses due to bombing earlier.

Veteran Vu The Huyen shares memories of the fiery summer of 1972

Looking pensively at the red river during flood season, Mr. Huyen recounted: When the C130 company was present at ferry terminal 2, the enemy continuously sent reconnaissance planes to hover. Whenever they discovered a target, they would shoot and drop bombs. From the sea, artillery from the 7th Fleet also fired day and night.

“On September 19, 1972, I was on duty at the ferry terminal. But that morning, Bui Nang Dac, a fellow soldier, insisted on changing his position. I agreed and went into the forest to cut down trees to build an A-shaped bunker. In the afternoon of the same day, when the boat carrying rocks from the South bank was about to dock, it was discovered by an American reconnaissance plane. They fired smoke flares at ferry terminal 2 so that the plane could drop bombs. 12 people standing on the shore quickly ran into two A-shaped bunkers to take shelter,” Mr. Huyen recalled.

The bomb hit between the two bunkers, causing both to collapse. The bomb blast caused trees to fall down, and the ground was dented a meter deep, black and burnt. Witnessing the scene, Mr. Huyen frantically ran out, wanting to call out: “Hey guys, hey guys” but… his tongue was tied. The pain was so great that it could only burst out in endless wails…

Long Dai ferry terminal today

“Ms. Xuyen was lying near the door, still breathing, her head was covered in blood, but she could only hold on for a few minutes. 12 other brothers and sisters died in the bunker due to the bomb pressure. In addition, 3 people died in the river, and their bodies were no longer intact. If we had not changed shifts, the one who would have been left behind would have been me, not Mr. Bui Nang Dac,” Mr. Huyen said, bursting into tears.

When the pain had not yet subsided, 4 days later, the US dropped another bomb on the ferry, killing Tran Manh Ha. After 2 bombing raids, the C130 Company lost a total of 16 people, including 7 women and 9 men, all from Kien Xuong, Thai Binh. They have forever transformed into each river and ferry in the most brilliant age of youth...

Recognizing the heroic sacrifices of the youth volunteers, especially the story of 16 children of the rice fields, over the years, the former Quang Binh province and the current Quang Tri province have paid attention to investment and restoration work.

In 2012, the Memorial House of 16 Youth Volunteers who sacrificed their lives was inaugurated with socialized funding. By October 2016, the relic was recognized as a provincial historical relic.

Then, in April 2025, with the support of T&T Group and many businesses and individuals, the project to Upgrade and Renovate the Long Dai Ferry Wharf II Historical Site officially started. After more than 4 months of urgent implementation, the project was completed with a total investment of nearly 20 billion VND. More happily, on September 9 this year, the Relic Site was officially recognized as a National Historical Site.

Epilogue

When talking about Long Dai Ferry Terminal II as well as other revolutionary historical sites in Quang Binh and Quang Tri (now Quang Tri), Mr. Le Ngoc Quang - Member of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of Quang Tri Provincial Party Committee, was moved to say that the restoration of historical sites is to express deep gratitude to the great contributions of the heroic martyrs who bravely fought and sacrificed for the cause of national liberation, national unification, and for the happiness of the people. Each person needs to spread and deeply appreciate the humanistic significance and profound historical value of the sites and historical events, which are the foundation for nurturing the national spirit; thereby arousing pride, fostering love for the homeland and country, educating the revolutionary tradition for today's young generation.

Long Dai ferry terminal today

53 years after the tragic bombing of the old ferry terminal, veteran Vu The Huyen and his C130 comrades slowly walked along the old riverbank, admiring the new, spacious and majestic relic site. The 71-year-old soldier could not remember how many thousands of bombs this land had endured; nor could he remember the faces or names of all the people who had fallen.

But he knew that the coordinates of fire by the green river were the ultimate test of human will. As soon as the bombs fell, soldiers rushed in to save the cargo and the ferry. As soon as their comrades fell, another would follow. With their blood and sweat, with their youth, they turned the ferry terminal into a battlefield, turning their will into strength to keep the North-South traffic artery flowing.

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/nhung-huyen-thoai-bat-tu-ben-dong-song-xanh-long-dai-post814496.html