Beesley was shot and killed on VC Island there in front of Dong Tam.  He was shot by FNG with an M-60 machine gun that should have been on safe.  We were marched down from the infantry tent area to the man made harbor next to the navy club.  There was a huge navy landing barge that carries about 500 people waiting there for us.  The engines on this thing made more noise than a gasoline powered army tank.  I wondered how this thing was going to get us to the island without awakening every VC within miles.  Our mission was to land on the South end of the island, move inward and identify a particular house.  We were guided by an ARVN solder who would take the lead.  After identifying the house we were to search for a VC chief that commanded the surrounding area, his wife and family lived in that house, he was supposed to be there for the holidays! We were instructed not to go to the West end of the island because the Seals were working that area.  I asked "what's a Seal?" I was told they were some special ops guys from the navy.  I couldn't believe the noise this landing barge was making on our way there.  On arrival this thing turned and headed straight for land crashing through the nippa palm, it didn't make it so it backed up and tried again with engines roaring.  Finding a better entrance down the waters edge it roared and dropped the landing ramp with a loud crash.  We scrambled out of this thing as fast as we could and hit the dirt.  We lay there until the barge had gone and everything was silent again.  Our first obstacle before us was a steep ravine filled with water, there was a palm tree that had been fell by the locals to get across.  The first elements of the platoon navigated the tree OK but in so doing they had left it full of mud and slippery.  I had gone across it and so had many others, Beesley was next.  Beesley had been in country for a while and knew how to navigate these things. The FNG was next to run across the palm tree, he carried the squad M-60 Machine gun, he was directly behind Beesley.  As the FNG started to run across the tree when he slipped and fell straddled across the tree, just as quick and having his finger on the trigger he fired one shot.  Everything fell silent, nobody moved or said a word, then we began to hear a low moaning sound like a man had been hurt.  Word came to the rest of us that Beesley had been shot and that the landing barge was being called back.  Beelsey was loaded up and taken to Dong Tam.  I don't know where he died, whether on the island, on his way back or in Dong Tam hospital.  After all the noise we made the mission was aborted and we got off that island as fast as we could.  I never knew Beesley or do I remember his face but his name will be etched in my mind until the day I die.     Sgt David Lopez

Listed as a misadventure. Don`t know how they got that info. We were in RECON PLT and were coming back from a S and D (search&destroy). We were on the other side of the canal that ran to the left of DONG TAM. I was the RTO for the first squad which was point squad . SSGT Baker had radioed ahead and told us to let the rear squad take point. We called it Leap Frog. We had only gone a short distance when Gary tripped the booby trap. He was alive when a boat from Dong Tam came to get him and the other three that were wounded. We tryed to get back to DONG TAM but the Dinks had the place full of traps, so we had to wait for another boat had to come and get us out of there. I did not know Gary had died until last week. He would stop and shoot the bull with me, being that he was also a RTO. Pat Reyes July17,2000