50 years ago today - 17 Aug 1950

[Ed Evanhoe <ede@oio.net>]

August 17, 1950

Shortly after it was  learned "G" Company had escaped from Hill 303, an 
massive artillery barrage and series of air attacks are ordered on the 
hill.  These began at 2 p.m. and were followed up by an attack by "E" & "F" 
Companies.  The hill was in friendly hands by 4:30 p.m.  As they advanced 
up the hill, scouts found a man from "H" Company's mortar platoon who told 
them the North Koreans had executed their American prisoners.  A short time 
later I&R Platoon, 5th Cavalry found the bodies of 26 "H" Company 
mortarmen, all with their hands tied behind their backs and shot down by 
burpgun fire.  5 other mortarmen survived the massacre by playing dead 
after bodies of their friends fell on top of them.  That night additional 
atrocities occurred when 2 tanks from the 7th Tank Battalion were knocked 
out by North Korean antitank fire and 6 crewmen captured by North Korean 
troops, then executed, also with their hands tied behind their backs.
.
Late in the morning the 27th Infantry Regiment received orders to move its 
headquarters and a reinforced infantry battalion to just north of the Kumho 
River (3 miles north of Taegu) and get there as soon as possible.  At noon 
the 1st Battalion along with a heavy mortar platoon and the 8th Field 
Artillery Battalion started for the Kumho River position arriving 
mid-afternoon, then moved forward another 2 miles to Ch'ilgok.  By evening 
the entire 27th Infantry Regiment plus "C" Company, 73rd Medium Tank 
Battalion were north of Taegu on the Tabu-dong - Sangju road.  Meanwhile 
the 37th Field Artillery Battalion was ordered from the P'ohang-dong area 
to Ch'ilgok for attachment to the 27th Infantry.

In the Naktong Bulge area the 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines moved out at 8 
a.m. to attack Obong-ni Ridge.  Heavy fighting ensued with the Marines 
gaining the crest twice but with too few men to hold on so were  thrown 
back each time.  After suffering 60% casualties in these attacks, the 2nd t 
Battalion was relieved by the 1st  Battalion who took up the attack.  At 4 
p.m. all American artillery fired a series of "Time on Target" (TOT) 
barrages on the Cloverleaf and Obong-ni Ridge.  These barrages, half impact 
fused and half air burst, worked with the forward slopes and down the 
reverse slope.  As soon as the TOT finished the 9th Infantry and 5th 
Marines attacked.  The air and ground bursts had done the job so this time 
the 9th Infantry retook the Cloverleaf and its reverse slopes so was able 
to use this high ground to support the 5th Marine attack on Obong-ni 
Ridge.  The Marines captured the northern knob of the ridge at about 5 
p.m.  Using this as a firebase, the Marines took the next two knobs to the 
south but were unable to take the third (Hill 145.)  Just before dark the 
North Koreans committed four T-34 tanks to try and break the Marine's hold 
on the Pass between the Ridge and the Cloverleaf.  Marine M-26s and 3.5" 
Bazooka teams destroyed three of the tanks while supporting F-51s destroyed 
the forth and scattered supporting North Korean Infantry.  While this was 
going on, the 19th and 34th Infantry Regiments made slow but steady 
progress in the center and northern sectors of the Bulge.

In the 25th Division area west of Masan North Koreans began a series of 
small probing attacks along the 24th and 35th Infantry fronts.  The most 
serious was a battalion sized attack on the 1st Battalion, 35th, located on 
Sibidang Ridge in the Komam-ni area.  The initial attack overran "A" 
Company and a mortar platoon but a counterattack later in the day retook 
these positions.

Ed Evanhoe, PO Box 916, Antlers, OK, 74523
Author: DARKMOON: Eighth Army Special Operations in the Korean War
Life Member: Special Forces & Special Operations Associations
Co-list owner: KOREAN-WAR-L  Web site: http://www.korean-war.com
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