The Complete Issue - Korean War Veterans Association

30
Roadblock At Kunuri-Sunchon Pass (North Korea)
Some of you may remember this sidebar item
that appeared in a previous edition of The
Graybeards. Unfortunately, no one responded to
the requester, but he did send us an elaboration
of the story, which follows.
The “Pass” is located about 12 miles
south of Kunuri and 16 road miles
north of Sunchon. The “Pass,“
referred to in history books as the
“Gauntlet,“ was a ¼-mile long defile, 1½lane
wide, winding dirt road, and the highest
point between Kunuri and Sunchon. The
hills of loose shale, rock and dirt overlooking
the road rose 50 feet on the east side of the
road, with a deep ravine on the west side of
the road.
About a 1/4 mile below the pass the
road jogged west, crossed a 30-foot wide,
3-foot deep river/stream, then turned south
again. Here a two-lane bridge had been
destroyed. A short distance beyond was the
small village of Karhyon-dong.
Earlier in the day, 30 November 1950,
elements of the 38th and 9th Infantry
Regiments, and a platoon from the 72nd
Tank Battalion, along with personnel from
the ROK Infantry, attempted to breach the
fire-block about seven (7) miles south of
the division CP which had been set up in
the pass by the Chinese troops, made up of
two CCF Regiments. The first of these
allied units were made up of tanks with
infantry personnel riding on top, followed
by several jeeps and 3/4 ton trucks, with
infantry personnel aboard.
The tanks made it through the pass with
some resistance. The last tank ran over a
damaged jeep, thereby totally blocking the
road. The remaining vehicles following the
tank were not as lucky, as the damaged
vehicle prevented them from continuing
through the pass.
The Chinese, seeing what had happened,
took complete control of the situation.
Machine-gun fire ripped up and down
the long line of thin-skinned vehicles that
waited helplessly for some one to remove
the obstruction. Trucks died in their tracks,
creating more blockages and confusion.
Men took shelter wherever they could find
it. Soon, the road and roadside ditches
were choked with dead and wounded. This
occurred just before noon.
The 2nd Infantry Division main column,
led by the few remaining remnants of
the 38th and 9th Infantry Regiments, followed
by the Medical Detachment,
Division Headquarters, Military Police
Company, Engineers, Artillery, etc., finally
appeared at the pass about 2:30 p.m.
Seeing the obstruction of about 20 to 25
vehicles, plus the dead and wounded,
blocking the road ahead, the column
stopped about 800 feet before reaching the
obstruction and just sat there. No one
attempted to remove the damaged vehicles
from the road. At this point, the retreating
division column was backed up for miles,
sustaining enemy fire from hills on both
sides of the road.
Sgt Robert Francis Keiser (no relation
to Gen. Keiser), an MP responsible for the
safety of Gen. Keiser, Commander, 2nd
Infantry Division and BG Bradley, Ass’t
Division Commander, was about two
miles back from the front of the convoy.
Having been in several roadblocks before,
he realized this might be the current situation.
He informed the Generals of his
thoughts and ran approximately two miles
to the front of the convoy.
Upon his arrival, he found his suspicions
were correct. None of the troops in
the convoy’s lead vehicles were doing anything
to remove the roadblock. While
under continual enemy fire, Sgt Keiser
started to remove these aforementioned
damaged vehicles from the road by physical
force and/or by using the starter to propel
them over the embankment. Those that
he found that would still run, he loaded
with the dead and wounded lying in the
road and the damaged vehicles. He then
commanded those men hiding in the ditches,
sometimes having to threaten them, to
drive the vehicles to the safety of friendly
lines. This procedure took him two hours
or more to complete.
By this time, BG Bradley had come forward.
While they were talking, machinegun
fire blew out the tires of the jeep they
were standing next to, at which point Sgt
Keiser knocked General Bradley to the
ground, and covered him with his body.
Once the obstruction was cleared, Sgt
Keiser continued. He was seen later standing
in the aforementioned stream, directing
For Once There Was A “Cop”
There When You Needed
One—But Who Remembers?
Ihave a great story about a 2nd Inf. Div
MP who was recom mended for the
Medal of Honor for his actions at the
Kunuri-Sunchon Pass in North Korea
on 11/30/50. According to the
Assistant Division Commander, he
saved a great part of the divi sion
through his actions. The recommendation
was turned down “Only” because
it was not submitted within two years
of the action. Regulations have since
been changed. These records have
since either been destroyed or are
stored somewhere collecting dust
and/or not yet been cataloged. I am trying
to resurrect these records. First,
however, I must have statements from
more of the men, still living, who saw
what he did. With that in mind. I am
searching for these men:
(1) Who were stranded in the south
end and narrowest part of the Kunuri-
Sunchon Pass on November 30, 1950
between 1030 hours and 1430 hours
before the main convoy reached the
pass.
(2) Who were in the lead element of
the Division’s Main Convoy when it
reached the roadblock in the narrowest
part of the pass at about 1430 hours.
(3) Who saw a lone MP running
from the rear to the front of the main
convoy shortly after it reached the road
block.
(4) Who saw a lone MP removing
the vehicles that formed the road block
from the narrowest part of the pass.
(5) Who saw a lone MP standing in
and/or at the river/stream just south of
the pass directing traffic through the
ford in the river/stream.
NOTE: You may have been one of
many of the wounded who he piled on
jeeps and 3/4 tons and drove to safety.
If you fall into any of these categories,
please contact:
Lue Gregg, 30 Gulf Blvd., Apt C,
Indian Rocks Beach, FL, 33785, (727)
593-8021, beachhouseirb@aol.com
September-October 2007
The Graybeards