Southern Cross information
for 196 INF

For date 711126


196 INF was a US Army unit
Primary service involved, US Army
Quang Nam Province, I Corps, South Vietnam
Location, Camp Charger
Description: The following is an edited version of an article titled "KEEP COOKING" by SP4 Mike Cassidy 196th Inf. Bde. IO. CAMP CHARGER - Can a mess hall that "cooks up a storm" keep on cooking after a storm by the name of Hester knocks out its power and destroys most of the mess hall building? The answer is yes, if you happen to be a member of the "Spoon Platoon" of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 196th Infantry Brigade. Typhoon Hester made her presence known in the Da Nang area around 2 a.m., rattling roofing and rocking buildings. By noon of that day, here wind and rain had knocked out electrical power and telephone communications. Shift leader SP5 Harold McBride (Indianapolis, Ind.) and his men came on duty at noon to be greeted with the swelling force of the storm. The wind gradually worked toward a peak of over 90 miles an hour at the beginning of the afternoon, ripping off pieces and sections of metal roofing. The gusts were carrying the metal up the steeply sloping terrain of Camp Charger. "Pieces of the roofing slammed into the side of the dining room all afternoon," recalls McBride. "Even though the wall was taking a beating, I didn't think the building would collapse." SFC Sammie Gray (Richmond, Va.) was not as optimistic. His training in Mess Steward School and personal experience had taught him to be prepared for the worst. Despite their different points of view, Gray and McBride set out to prepare the evening meal. Except for clearing the table wo that nothing would be broken and moving the tables away from areas where the rain was coming in, it was business as usual, until 3:30 p.m. when the roof caved in on that idea. "There was this piece of somebody's roof that wanted to get in the mess hall and it did," explained McBride. The roof started to fall in, it was prevented from hitting the floor by the electrical wiring. The dining hall roof "waved in the breeze", according to McBride, for the next four hours until the wiring gave way. Other disasters followed, the food had to be cooked in gas stoves and on emergency fire units. Although the food was covered, the typhoon winds stirred up enough dust and debris to ruin most of the meal. Only the ham remained. It was decided to put the food away until the storm died down. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese kitchen workers and cooks went to the safety of the walk-in refrigerators at the rear of the mess hall. SP5 Robert Piadade (St. Johnsburg, Bt.) and SP4 Billy Mays (Monroe, N. C.) collected sleeping gear for the Vietnamese since it was too dangerous to drive them to the gate, much less drive them home. Many people showed up for supper as usual at 4:30 p.m. About 100 people were told to return after the Spoon Platoon had a chance to cook a hot meal. When it became apparent that the storm was not going to let up soon, C-rations were brought out. SP5 William Caston (Norfolk, Va.) distributed the rations from the back of the mess hall's truck until 2 a.m. Caston stayed in the swaying truck all night. In the morning the truck had three flat tires, apparently from the flying debris. Though they were unable to prepare a full meal, they did fill requests for coffee. McBride estimates that the Spoon Prepared 25 gallons of coffee that night. When the storm had subsided slightly, both the on-duty and off-duty shifts pitched into get the kitchen back into working condition. Shortly after 2 a.m. the winds stopped. With flashlights in hand and stoves blazing away producing light as well as cooking heat, McBride's shift started preparing breakfast. The flashlights and stoves served as illumination for the job until power was restored several days later. Even though their efforts were handicapped, a full breakfast was served, including grits, pancakes, bacon, juice, coffee and ham that would have been served the night before. Expecting anything in view of the previous days havoc, the men of Headquarters Company were surprised by an improvised by complete chow line set up in the kitchen. "Hope you fellows want your eggs scrambled, 'cause that's all we've got this morning," warned Gary Gillette (Johnson City, Tenn.) as he worked the grill that morning. Not having eggs to order was the only compromise the cooks made.

The source for this information was 7111_445_scr supplied by Les Hines 01/05/2000

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Date posted on this site: 05/13/2023