Despite wounds, Medal of Honor recipient killed up to 175 enemies, saved comrades

CNN ^ | 15 Sep 2014 | Brad Lendon

[mandaladon]

(CNN) -- As many as 175 enemy troops killed, 18 wounds from enemy fire, 38 hours of battle, 48 hours evading the North Vietnamese troops in the bush -- and one tiger. Those are the numbers behind Sgt. Maj. Bennie Adkins' Medal of Honor, an award he received from President Barack Obama in a White House ceremony Monday.

Adkins of Opelika, Alabama, was honored for his actions in Vietnam's A Shau Valley more than 48 years ago. Then a 32-year-old sergeant first class, Adkins was among a handful of Americans working with troops of the South Vietnamese Civilian Irregular Defense Group at Camp A Shau when the camp was attacked by a large North Vietnamese and Viet Cong force on March 9, 1966, according to an Army report.

"Adkins rushed through intense enemy fire and manned a mortar position defending the camp," the Army report says. "He continued to mount a defense even while incurring wounds from several direct hits from enemy mortars. Upon learning that several soldiers were wounded near the center of camp, he temporarily turned the mortar over to another soldier, ran through exploding mortar rounds and dragged several comrades to safety. As the hostile fire subsided, Adkins exposed himself to sporadic sniper fire and carried his wounded comrades to a more secure position."

Later, under enemy fire, some of it coming from South Vietnamese allies who had defected to the North during the battle, Adkins took wounded troops to an airstrip outside the camp for evacuation and drew enemy fire away from the evacuation aircraft. He went outside the camp again to retrieve supplies from an airdrop that fell into a minefield. And that was just day one.

[pfflier]

Is it my imagination or has odumbo given out more MOH's that any other modern president? Also many are retroactive and appear to be correcting "social injustices".

Still valor deserves recognition if this isn't part of a political game.

[minnesota_bound]

Always a part of a political game with obama and the democrats.

[Rockpile]

This was the same battle where Air Force Major Bernie Fisher got the MoH I believe.

In the ‘60s I read the book about Cushing’s Naval officer brother William. It was called Lincoln’s Commando.
Their brother Howard ran one of the best cavalry troops in the US Army and was killed in Arizona fighting the Apaches.

There was another brother in the Civil War Army also. The whole damn family had leather balls.

[X Fretensis]

Fortunately for our country, when duty calls, there always seems to be brave men like this that answer that call.