A Foxhole View: Personal Accounts of Hawaii's Korean War Veterans

Part II: 1951: Chinese Firecrackers in Korea

Part II 1951 | Chinese Firecrackers in Korea On New Year’s Day,the Chinese launched their first offensive of the year with a vengeance, committing nearly 500,000 communist troops into battle in an attempt to keep the UN off balance and to capture the South Korean capital. UN forces, still smarting from their defeat in North Korea, particularly at the Changjin Reservoir, Unsan, and Kunuri, were driven farther southward,as far as 50 miles below the 38th parallel,allowing communist forces to take Seoul for the second time. 109 1951 | Chinese Firecrackers in Korea 111 January 1951 Pvt. Gary Hashimoto Pusan, South Korea We didn’t stay long in Seattle and shipped out on a Liberty troop ship, which was packed with soldiers. About the third day out at sea we hit a violent storm and everybody got sick.The way the ship was rocking and rolling, I thought it would capsize. After a couple of weeks in Japan, we caught the ferry to Pusan, Korea, and waited for our assignments. It seemed like Korea was colder than Japan. The tents we stayed in while waiting for orders did not have heaters. We were joined by Norman Ahakuelo of Honolulu.The three of us were the only local boys from Hawaii there at the time. Jack and I were disappointed when we finally got our orders. Instead of being assigned to a frontline unit, we were assigned to guard trains that took troops and supplies to the front. Guards were needed because the trains were frequently ambushed by North Korean guerrillas. When our troops broke out of the Pusan Perimeter in mid-September 1950, thousands of North Koreans were trapped and bypassed by UN forces. Republic of Korea army units were supposed to have cleaned out these pockets of resistance but apparently missed quite a few. They fled into the mountains and conducted guerrilla warfare. January 1951 Pvt. Hisashi Morita Item Company, 23d Infantry Vicinity of Chunchon, South Korea I joined my unit in December when it was on line below the 38th parallel . I was assigned to a rifle squad. A couple of old-timers told me that the entire division took a severe beating in November and December in North Korea south of the town of Kunuri. The division suffered thousands of casualties. Vicinity of Hoengsong, South Korea The January offensive by the Chinese sent us reeling back for miles. A buddy of mine, whom I knew since basic training, was shell-shocked, and would have been killed or captured if I hadn’t helped him. For two and half weeks I literally dragged him along, carrying his 112 a foxhole view pack and weapon. The fact that I was still in good physical condition helped. Oftentimes we were left behind by the main body but managed to catch up when it took a break. When we had outdistanced the Chinese, I left him in the care of a medic. That was the last I saw of him until fifty years later. I learned through some friends that he made it back to Hawaii and was all right. January 1951 Pfc. Moses Pakaki 4.2 Inch Mortar Company, 35th Infantry Vicinity of Suwon, South Korea We got our asses kicked by the Chinese in November 1950. Not only us, but also all of the UN and Republic of Korea forces as well. The capital city of South Korea, Seoul, was again taken by communist forces. But somehow the North Koreans and Chinese had run out gas and the front lines stabilized south of Seoul. We got word that there was going to be an all-out push along the front to regain the ground that had been lost. I guess the brass had had enough bug-outs and decided to take the offensive. The attack began on January 23 at about 1500 hours. We moved out behind the infantry and it appeared that we had things pretty much in control the first couple of days. We were not moving as fast as the time we broke out of the Pusan Perimeter in September 1950. On the fourth day, the infantry units ahead of us found the going rough and called for mortar support. Our mortar company pulled into a draw to set up the mortars. The area had patches of potatoes, corn, and other vegetables and a small, dry rice paddy. We had no time...