Ghosts of Vietnam

Pvt. Rayfon Lofton The instructor told us that there should never be more than one man on the rope because it would stretch the rope too much and cause it to go below the water level. Pvt. Ray Lofton was also in my company along with his friend Pvt. Joe Young. We didn’t hang around together, but we were still friends. Ray was from Chattanooga, Tennessee. I don’t know where Joe was from. It was August 23, 1966; we were out on a mission. It was hot and humid, as we walked through the jungle we would sweat so much that our fatigues were soaking wet. Rain was a welcome relief and we got plenty of that. It rained all the time. Sometimes it rained for days at a time. After a while we came upon a creek. We were told that we had to cross the creek. The creek wasn’t more than twenty feet across, but it was moving at a fast pace. It was already afternoon and we had been gone most of the day. Like in training one guy stripped down to his shorts, tied the rope around his waist and swam across to the other side of the creek. We tied the other end of the rope to a tree on our side and made sure the rope was taught. The first person in our group got on the rope and started moving across the creek. Because of the speed of the creek it was slow going. Sgt. Poe came over and ordered the second guy to get on the rope. The second guy got on the rope, causing it to stretch more, but it was still okay. Sgt. Poe ordered the third guy on the rope, even though there were two guys on the rope already. This is what we were told in training never to do. This was Joe Young. While getting into the creek, he slipped and fell into the water. Two spotters, standing on the bank of the 101 creek, reached down and grabbed hold of him and pulled him out of the creek, but not before he swallowed some water and was shaken up. The first two guys were still on the rope. Lofton was next. Seeing his friend shaken up, Lofton took Young’s helmet, backpack and rifle. Lofton turned to me, the next person to get on the rope after him and handed me Young’s helmet and rifle. The first person on the rope made it to the other side of the creek and climbed out. The second guy on the rope was in the middle of the creek. When Lofton got on the rope and went into the creek he was carrying his rifle, his helmet, and two backpacks each weighing around 40 pounds. The rope stretched to the point where it was just above the water level not more than an inch or two, but way lower than what we trained for. Instead of getting on the rope, I stood at the bank of the creek and pulled the rope so that Lofton would stay above water. I believed if I got on the rope with all my gear plus Young’s helmet and rifle, plus my radio, Pvt. Lofton would go under. It was working fine; Lofton started making his way across the rope. He reached the center of the rope with no problems. This was the swiftest part. With all the extra weight he started to show signs of fatigue. He wasn’t making any progress. He was just holding on for dear life. Sgt. Poe walked over and ordered me on the rope. I explained to him what I was doing, how Lofton was carrying extra weight and he would sink if I let go. He didn’t want to hear anything other than “Yes Sgt.” I didn’t let go. I held the rope firmly knowing that Lofton needed the help. Unfortunately, Sgt. Poe wasn’t listening to me. I was a lowly Private who was always in trouble. The thought of a Pvt. telling a 1st Sgt. anything was unthinkable. He never even looked at Ray Lofton. We started yelling at each other. I called him every name in the book. But my attention kept going back to the creek. Lofton, in the meantime, wasn’t moving and he was tired. Sgt. Poe was screaming things at me, but now I just ignored him. I was concentrating on Ray. Hearing the commotion, Capt. Clark came over to see what the problem was. All Sgt. Poe told him was that I was refusing to get on the rope. I tried to tell Capt. Clark what was happening to Lofton but like Poe he didn’t want to hear it. He looked at me and said, “Get in the water or you will be courtmartialed.” As soon as I let go of the rope, Lofton sank into the water over his head. I grabbed hold of the rope and pulled it back but it was too late. The spotters jumped into the water a few feet downstream but were unable to find Ray. Sgt. Poe and Capt. Clark never said a word to me about the incident. The next day, without me, my company went back to find Lofton and to cross the creek. They found him a little way down stream. I think about this incident every day trying to convince myself that I was only following orders, but many years later when I started talking about it I realized something I never considered. When Ray Lofton went under, in my panic, did I pull the rope out of his hands? Did I cause his death?