Reply #3: Include the Navy Cargo Handlers in Danang

[Stalwart]

During 1996-1997 there was a great amount of material coming into Danang on cargo ships. I do not remember offloading agent orange. If it did not all come in by air then I am sure that we probably handled it. We offloaded vast amounts of 55 gallon drums with a variety of contents. Generally we called it all POL product (petroleum oil product).

Until the piers were completed we offloaded ships in the harbor, loading cargo into boats that took it ashore. Drums were often punctured in the process and leaked contents. The hatch teams worked 12 hours on and 12 hours off 6 days a week. On the cargo ships there were wash rooms available if anyone became contaminated with anything but I do not think many of the sailors would come up out of the hold to clean up.. We all just walked around it whatever was on the deck.

Meals were c-rations eaten on station, usually on deck. There was probably a good chance of hand to mouth ingestions of any chemicals that were spilled in addition to skin exposure. Exposure to any leaking drums would extend through the entire chain of handlers all the way to ultimate use or disposal of leaking drums that could not be used.

I have always wondered about my own exposure as well as those in the hatch teams. Cargo was handled roughly to either get the job done or due to lack of proper equipment. Breakage of material containers, pallets or drums was consequently frequent.

When no forklifts were available we "snaked" pallets out of the hold. That is hooking on to a pallet not in the hatch square, pulling it into the hatch square then lifting it out of the hatch. A good winch operator could swing it into the hatch square and set it down roughly to stop the swing and not break the pallet. Sometimes pallets broke. The best hatch teams were selected to do this, when necessary, with ammo. Other hatch teams did it with less skill on general cargo including 55 gallon drums when lifts were not available. Pallets often broke, drums were punctured with forks, various other things caused leaks.

Potential for exposure was great. There were about 500 sailors working on cargo offload at the Navy Support Activity, Danang.