Accession Number: 2021-011-01
Original work: Painting, Oil on Linen
Original size: 15 by 30 inches
At 0322 hours on 1 November, 1968, the USS Westchester County (a converted World War 2 LST nicknamed “Wesco”) was anchored mid-stream on the My Tho River forty miles upstream from the coastal village of Vung Tau. She was rocked by two huge explosions within a minute of each other on her starboard side just below the water line. Lashed to the ship at the blast point were three connected 50’ Ammis pontoon barges, which served as a dock for the patrol boats of Navy River Assault Division 111. The Wesco was the home base for 175 soldiers of the 9th Infantry Division 3rd Battalion 34th Artillery Unit and the crews for the “brown water Navy’s” Mobile Riverine Group Alpha.
The moon was only half full and the Wesco was dark except for its navigation lights when two North Vietnamese swimmers attached two 150-500 pound mines to Wesco’s hull and swam away. The blast killed 17 of the Wesco’s crew, five soldiers of the 9th Infantry Division, one sailor of Navy River Assault Division 111, one South Vietnamese sailor, and one South Vietnamese interpreter. It was the Navy’s highest single-action loss of life in the Vietnam War.
Wesco was beached by its captain for temporary repairs, then sailed under her own power to its home port of Yokosuka, Japan, where it was repaired and upgraded over the next year, then returned to the war. She was decommissioned in 1973 and in 1974 was sent to the Turkish Navy to augment allied forces in the region.
Reproduction Size:
If not indicated, the average reproduction is approximately 20x26 inches. All reproductions are custom printed and can be printed/framed to various sizes. We are happy to quote various options. Contact Us
|
