February 1967

Summary - February 1967

The Army designates the 24^th Evac to be the main hospital in the III and IV Corps areas for neurosurgical (head, neck, and spinal cord) cases. Prior to this time, such patients were sent to the 3^rd Field Hospital in Saigon, near the Ton Son Nhut air base, but patients had to be transported by ground to the hospital, causing a delay in treatment and jostling the patient with the possibility of further injury. (Sources: Fritz Ruben, Don Patrick)

February 7

SP4 Ken Bowen and SP4 Rick Rounds, both 91P20 X-ray techs, join the 24^th, working under Chief Radiologist CPT Arnold Goldman. Some thoughts from Ken Bowen from an email:

We left Travis, had a 3 or 4 hour layover in Hawaii where Rick and I got very drunk on Mai Tai's. We slept until Clark AFB in the Philippines. Then we were very hung over to Bien Hoa AB. We arrived about 3 in the morning and from the air we could see the fireworks as the Long Binh ammo dump was exploding because of a VC sapper attack (happened twice during my tour). The buses and MP security convoy took us to Long Binh!!! Talk about a scary welcome to Viet Nam!.

LT Susan Dunn also joins the 24^th Evac and is assigned to Wards 5 & 6.

February 10

CPT Grethe Hawken (now Cammermeyer) is assigned and told by Chief Nurse LTC Angie McCloud to set up the Medical Ward. (Source: Serving in Silence. Cammermeyer)

February - Exact Date Unknown

Lou Mengoi, General Surgeon, arrived.

Tim Morton was one of the original members of the 24^th Evac, pictured here in scrubs. Tim was an Operating Room Technician.

Photo Courtesy Tim Morton
Click on picture to see larger version

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Updated October 14, 2000