Ems Commission Policy For Advance Directive Education - In: Fill & Download for Free

An emergency medical technician (EMT), also known as an ambulance technician, is a health professional that provides emergency medical services.EMTs are most commonly found working in ambulances. In English-speaking countries, paramedics are a separate profession that has additional educational requirements, qualifications, and scope of practice.EMTs are often employed by private ambulance services, municipal EMS agencies, government, and fire departments. Some EMTs are paid employees, while others (particularly those in rural areas) are volunteers.EMTs provide medical care under a set of protocols, which are typically written by a physician.EMTs are exposed to a variety of hazards such as lifting patients and equipment, treating those with infectious disease, handling hazardous substances, and transportation via ground or air vehicles. Employers can prevent occupational illness or injury by providing safe patient handling equipment, implementing a training program to educate EMTs on job hazards, and supplying PPE such as respirators, gloves, and isolation gowns when dealing with biological hazards.Infectious disease has become a major concern, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. In response, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other agencies and organizations have issued guidance regarding workplace hazard controls for COVID-19. Some specific recommendations include modified call queries, symptom screening, universal PPE use, hand hygiene, physical distancing, and stringent disinfection protocols.Research on ambulance ventilation systems found that aerosols often recirculate throughout the compartment, creating a health hazard for EMTs when transporting sick patients capable of airborne transmission.Entry-level EMS healthcare professional, with 120 hours of classroom training followed by 40 hours clinical placement.A state-level exam needs to be completed before you are invited to register as an EMT.EMT's are trained in basic life support, anatomy/physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacology, ECG monitoring, advanced airway management (supraglottic airways), spinal immobilization and the administration of medication typically oral, intramuscular, inhaled, nebulised or sublingual.In the United States, EMTs are certified according to their level of training. Individual states set their own standards of certification (or licensure, in some cases) and all EMT training must meet the minimum requirements as set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) standards for curriculum.The National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) is a private organization that offers certification exams based on NHTSA education guidelines and has been around since the 1970s.Currently, NREMT exams are used by 46 states as the sole basis for certification at one or more EMT certification levels.A NREMT exam consists of skills and patient assessments as well as a written portion.On June 12, 2019, the NREMT changed the rules regarding age limits for EMTs, AEMTs, and Paramedics. There is no longer an age limit for registered personnel. However, applicants must successfully complete a state-approved EMT course that meets or exceeds the NREMT Standards within the past 2 years of applying. Those applying for the NREMT Certification must also complete a state-approved EMT psychomotor exam. It is possible for the candidate to be refused access to a state-approved course due to their age within the state.LevelsNHTSA recognizes four levels of Emergency Medical Technician:EMR (Emergency Medical Responder)EMT (Emergency Medical Technician)AEMT (Advanced Emergency Medical Technician)ParamedicSome states also recognize the Advanced Practice Paramedic or Critical Care Paramedic level as a state-specific licensure above that of the Paramedic. These Critical Care Paramedics generally perform high acuity transports that require skills outside the scope of a standard paramedic (such as mechanical ventilation and management of cardiac assist devices).In addition, EMTs can seek out specialty certifications such as Wilderness EMT, Wilderness Paramedic, Tactical EMT, and Flight Paramedic.In 2009, the NREMT posted information about a transition to a new system of levels for emergency care providers developed by NHTSA with the National EMS Scope of Practice project.By 2014, these "new" levels will replace the fragmented system found around the United States. The new classification will include Emergency Medical Responder (replacing first responder), Emergency Medical Technician (replacing EMT-Basic), Advanced Emergency Medical Technician (replacing EMT-Intermediate/85), and Paramedic (replacing EMT-Intermediate/99 and EMT-Paramedic). Education requirements in transitioning to the new levels are substantially similar.The procedures and skills allowed at this level include bleeding control, management of burns, splinting of suspected fractures and spinal injuries, childbirth, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, semi-automatic defibrillation, oral suctioning, insertion of oropharyngeal and nasopharyngeal airways, pulse oximetry, blood glucose monitoring, auscultation of lung sounds, and administration of a limited set of medications (including oxygen, epinephrine, dextrose, nalaxone, albuterol, ipratropium bromide, glucagon, nitroglycerin, nitrous oxide, and acetylsalicylic acid). Some areas may add to the scope of practice, including intravenous access, insertion of supraglottic airway devices and CPAP. Training requirements and treatment protocols vary from area to area.An ambulance with only EMTs is considered a Basic Life Support (BLS) unit, an ambulance utilizing AEMTs is dubbed an Intermediate Life Support (ILS), or limited Advanced Life Support (LALS) unit, and an ambulance with Paramedics is dubbed an Advanced Life Support (ALS) unit. Many states allow ambulance crews to contain a mix of crews levels (e.g. an EMT and a Paramedic or an AEMT and a Paramedic) to staff ambulances and operate at the level of the highest trained provider. There is nothing stopping supplemental crew members to be of a certain certification, though (e.g. if an ALS ambulance is required to have two Paramedics, then it is acceptable to have two Paramedics and an EMT). An emergency vehicle with only EMRs or a combination of both EMRs and EMTs is still dubbed a Basic Life Support (BLS) unit. An EMR must usually be overseen by an EMT-level provider or higher to work on a transporting ambulance.Education and trainingEMT training programs for certification vary greatly from course to course, provided that each course at least meets local and national requirements. In the United States, EMRs receive at least 40–80 hours of classroom training and EMTs receive at least 120–300 hours of classroom training. AEMTs generally have 200–500 hours of classroom training, and Paramedics are trained for 1,500–2,500 hours or more.In addition to each level's didactic education, clinical rotations are typically also be required. Similar in a sense to medical school clinical rotations, EMT students are required to spend a required amount of time in an ambulance and on a variety of hospital services (e.g. obstetrics, emergency medicine, surgery, intensive care unit, psychiatry) in order to complete a course and become eligible for the certification and licensure exams.The number of clinical hours for both time in an ambulance and time in the hospital vary depending on local requirements, the level the student is obtaining, and the amount of time it takes the student to show competency.In addition, a minimum of continuing education (CE) hours is required to maintain certification. For example, to maintain NREMT certification, EMTs must obtain at least 48 hours of additional education and either complete a 24-hour refresher course or complete an additional 24 hours of CEs that would cover, on an hour by hour basis, the same topics as the refresher course would.Recertification for other levels follows a similar pattern.EMT training programs vary greatly in calendar length (number of days or months). For example, fast track programs are available for EMTs that are completed in two weeks by holding class for 8 to 12 hours a day for at least two weeks. Other training programs are months long, or up to 2 years for Paramedics in an associate degree program. EMT training programs take place at numerous locations, such as universities, community colleges, technical schools, hospitals or EMS academies. Every state in the United States has an EMS lead agency or state office of emergency medical services that regulates and accredits EMT training programs. Most of these offices have web sites to provide information to the public and individuals who are interested in becoming an EMT.Medical directionIn the United States, an EMT's actions in the field are governed by state regulations, local regulations, and by the policies of their EMS organization. The development of these policies are guided by a physician medical director, often with the advice of a medical advisory committee.In California, for example, each county's Local Emergency Medical Service Agency (LEMSA) issues a list of standard operating procedures or protocols, under the supervision of the California Emergency Medical Services Authority. These procedures often vary from county to county based on local needs, levels of training and clinical experiences.New York State has similar procedures, whereas a regional medical-advisory council ("REMAC") determines protocols for one or more counties in a geographical section of the state.Treatments and procedures administered by Paramedics fall under one of two categories, off-line medical orders (standing orders) or on-line medical orders. On-line medical orders refers to procedures that must be explicitly approved by a base hospital physician or registered nurse through voice communication (generally by phone or radio) and are generally rare or high risk procedures (e.g. vasopressor initiation).In addition, when multiple levels can perform the same procedure (e.g. AEMT-Critical Care and Paramedics in New York), a procedure can be both an on-line and a standing order depending on the level of the provider.Since no set of protocols can cover every patient situation, many systems work with protocols as guidelines and not "cook book" treatment plans.Finally, systems also have policies in place to handle medical direction when communication failures happen or in disaster situations.The NHTSA curriculum is the foundation Standard of Care for EMS providers in the US.EmploymentEMTs and Paramedics are employed in varied settings, mainly the prehospital environment such as in EMS, fire, and police agencies. They can also be found in positions ranging from hospital and health care settings, industrial and entertainment positions.The prehospital environment is loosely divided into non-emergency (e.g. patient transport) and emergency (9-1-1 calls) services, but many ambulance services and EMS agencies operate both non-emergency and emergency care.In many places across the United States, it is not uncommon for the primary employer of EMRs, EMTs, and Paramedics to be the fire department, with the fire department providing the primary emergency medical system response including "first responder" fire apparatus, as well as ambulances.In many other locations, emergency medical services are provided by a separate, or “third-party”, municipal government emergency agency (e.g. Boston EMS, Austin-Travis County EMS).In still other locations, emergency medical services are provided by volunteer agencies. College and university campuses may provide emergency medical responses on their own campus using students.In some states of the US, many EMS agencies are run by Independent Non-Profit Volunteer First Aid Squads that are their own corporations set up as separate entities from fire departments. In this environment, volunteers are hired to fill certain blocks of time to cover emergency calls. These volunteers have the same state certification as their paid counterparts.NURSEThe authority for the practice of nursing is based upon a social contract that delineates professional rights and responsibilities as well as mechanisms for public accountability. In almost all countries, nursing practice is defined and governed by law, and entrance to the profession is regulated at the national or state level.The aim of the nursing community worldwide is for its professionals to ensure quality care for all, while maintaining their credentials, code of ethics, standards, and competencies, and continuing their education.There are a number of educational paths to becoming a professional nurse, which vary greatly worldwide; all involve extensive study of nursing theory and practice as well as training in clinical skills.Nurses care for individuals of all ages and cultural backgrounds who are healthy and ill in a holistic manner based on the individual's physical, emotional, psychological, intellectual, social, and spiritual needs. The profession combines physical science, social science, nursing theory, and technology in caring for those individuals.To work in the nursing profession, all nurses hold one or more credentials depending on their scope of practice and education. In the United States, a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) works independently or with a Registered Nurse (RN). The most significant difference between an LPN and RN is found in the requirements for entry to practice, which determines entitlement for their scope of practice. RNs provide scientific, psychological, and technological knowledge in the care of patients and families in many health care settings. RNs may earn additional credentials or degrees.In the United States, multiple educational paths will qualify a candidate to sit for the licensure examination as an RN. The Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) is awarded to the nurse who has completed a two-year undergraduate academic degree awarded by community colleges, junior colleges, technical colleges, and bachelor's degree-granting colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study usually lasting two years. It is also referred to as Associate in Nursing (AN), Associate of Applied Science in Nursing (AAS), or Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN).The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) is awarded to the nurse who has earned an American four-year academic degree in the science and principles of nursing, granted by a tertiary education university or similarly accredited school. After completing either the LPN or either RN education programs in the United States, graduates are eligible to sit for a licensing examination to become a nurse, the passing of which is required for the nursing license. The National Licensure Examination (NCLEX) test is a standardized exam (including multiple choice, select all that apply, fill in the blank and "hot spot" questions) that nurses take to become licensed. It costs two-hundred dollars to take the NCLEX. It examines a nurses ability to properly care for a client. Study books and practice tests are available for purchase.Some nurses follow the traditional role of working in a hospital setting. Other options include: pediatrics, neonatal, maternity, OBGYN, geriatrics, ambulatory, and nurse anesthetists and informatics (eHealth). There are many other options nurses can explore depending on the type of degree and education acquired. RNs may also pursue different roles as advanced practice nurses.Nurses are not doctors' assistants. This is possible in certain situations, but nurses more often are independently caring for their patients or assisting other nurses.RNs treat patients, record their medical history, provide emotional support, and provide follow-up care. Nurses also help doctors perform diagnostic tests. Nurses are almost always working on their own or with other nurses. Nurses will assist doctors in the emergency room or in trauma care when help is needed.Medication management and administration are part of most hospital nursing roles, however, prescribing authority varies between jurisdictions. In many areas, registered nurses administer and manage medications prescribed by a professional with full prescribing authority such as a nurse practitioner or physician. As nurses are responsible for evaluating patients throughout their care - including before and after medication administration - adjustments to medications are often made through a collaborative effort between the prescriber and the nurse. Regardless of the prescriber, nurses are legally responsible for the drugs they administer. There may be legal implications when there is an error in a prescription, and the nurse could be expected to have noted and reported the error. In the United States, nurses have the right to refuse any medication administration that they deem to be potentially harmful to the patient.Nursing is the most diverse of all health care professions. Nurses practice in a wide range of settings but generally nursing is divided depending on the needs of the person being nursed.The major populations are:communities/publicfamily/individual across the lifespanadult-gerontologypediatricsneonatalwomen's health/gender-relatedmental healthinformatics (eHealth)acute care hospitalsambulatory settings (physician offices, urgent care settings, camps, etc)school/college infirmariesThere are also specialist areas such as cardiac nursing, orthopedic nursing, palliative care, perioperative nursing, obstetrical nursing, oncology nursing, nursing informatics, telenursing, radiology, and emergency nursing.Nurses practice in a wide range of settings, including hospitals, private homes, schools, and pharmaceutical companies. Nurses work in occupational health settings (also called industrial health settings), free-standing clinics and physician offices, nurse-led clinics, long-term care facilities and camps. They also work on cruise ships and in military service. Nurses act as advisers and consultants to the health care and insurance industries. Many nurses also work in the health advocacy and patient advocacy fields at companies such as Health Advocate, Inc. helping in a variety of clinical and administrative issues.Some are attorneys and others work with attorneys as legal nurse consultants, reviewing patient records to assure that adequate care was provided and testifying in court. Nurses can work on a temporary basis, which involves doing shifts without a contract in a variety of settings, sometimes known as per diem nursing, agency nursing or travel nursing. Nurses work as researchers in laboratories, universities, and research institutions. Nurses have also been delving into the world of informatics, acting as consultants to the creation of computerized charting programs and other software. Nurse authors publish articles and books to provide essential reference materials.The fast-paced and unpredictable nature of health care places nurses at risk for injuries and illnesses, including high occupational stress. Nursing is a particularly stressful profession, and nurses consistently identify stress as a major work-related concern and have among the highest levels of occupational stress when compared to other professions. This stress is caused by the environment, psychosocial stressors, and the demands of nursing, including new technology that must be mastered, the emotional labor involved in nursing, physical labor, shift work, and high workload. This stress puts nurses at risk for short-term and long-term health problems, including sleep disorders, depression, mortality, psychiatric disorders, stress-related illnesses, and illness in general. Nurses are at risk of developing compassion fatigue and moral distress, which can worsen mental health. They also have very high rates of occupational burnout (40%) and emotional exhaustion (43.2%). Burnout and exhaustion increase the risk for illness, medical error, and suboptimal care provision.Nurses are also at risk for violence and abuse in the workplace.Violence is typically perpetrated by non-staff (e.g. patients or family), whereas abuse is typically perpetrated by other hospital personnel. Of American nurses, 57% reported in 2011 that they had been threatened at work; 17% were physically assaulted.In the US, scope of practice is determined by the state or territory in which a nurse is licensed. Each state has its own laws, rules, and regulations governing nursing care. Usually the making of such rules and regulations is delegated to a state board of nursing, which performs day-to-day administration of these rules, licenses for nurses and nursing assistants, and makes decisions on nursing issues. In some states, the terms "nurse" or "nursing" may only be used in conjunction with the practice of a registered nurse (RN) or licensed practical or vocational nurse (LPN/LVN).In the hospital setting, registered nurses often delegate tasks to LPNs and unlicensed assistive personnel.RNs are not limited to employment as bedside nurses. They are employed by physicians, attorneys, insurance companies, governmental agencies, community/public health agencies, private industry, school districts, ambulatory surgery centers, among others. Some registered nurses are independent consultants who work for themselves, while others work for large manufacturers or chemical companies. Research nurses conduct or assist in the conduct of research or evaluation (outcome and process) in many areas such as biology, psychology, human development, and health care systems.Many employers offer flexible work schedules, child care, educational benefits, and bonuses. About 21 percent of registered nurses are union members or covered by union contract.Nursing is the nation's largest health care profession. In 2017, there were more than 4,015,250 registered nurses and 922,196 licensed practical nurses nationwide.Of all licensed RNs, 2.6 million or 84.8% are employed in nursing. Nurses comprise the largest single component of hospital staff, are the primary providers of hospital patient care, and deliver most of the nation's long-term care. The primary pathway to professional nursing, as compared to technical-level practice, is the four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree. Registered nurses are prepared either through a BSN program; a three-year associate degree in nursing; or a three-year hospital training program, receiving a hospital diploma. All take the same state licensing exam. (The number of diploma programs has declined steadily—to less than 10 percent of all basic RN education programs—as nursing education has shifted from hospital-operated instruction into the college and university system.)Educational and licensure requirementsDiploma in NursingThe oldest method of nursing education is the hospital-based diploma program, which lasts approximately three years. Students take between 30 and 60 credit hours in anatomy, physiology, microbiology, nutrition, chemistry, and other subjects at a college or university, then move on to intensive nursing classes. Until 1996, most RNs in the US were initially educated in nursing by diploma programs.[62]According to the Health Services Resources Administration's 2000 Survey of Nurses only six percent of nurses who graduated from nursing programs in the United States received their education at a Diploma School of Nursing.Associate Degree in NursingThe most common initial nursing education is a two-year Associate Degree in Nursing (Associate of Applied Science in Nursing, Associate of Science in Nursing, Associate Degree in Nursing), a two-year college degree referred to as an ADN. Some four-year colleges and universities also offer the ADN. Associate degree nursing programs have prerequisite and corequisite courses (which may include English, Math and Human Anatomy and Physiology) and ultimately stretch out the degree-acquiring process to about three years or greater.Bachelor of Science in NursingThe third method is to obtain a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), a four-year degree that also prepares nurses for graduate-level education. For the first two years in a BSN program, students usually obtain general education requirements and spend the remaining time in nursing courses. In some new programs the first two years can be substituted for an active LPN license along with the required general studies. Advocates for the ADN and diploma programs state that such programs have an on the job training approach to educating students, while the BSN is an academic degree that emphasizes research and nursing theory. Some states require a specific amount of clinical experience that is the same for both BSN and ADN students. A BSN degree qualifies its holder for administrative, research, consulting and teaching positions that would not usually be available to those with an ADN, but is not necessary for most patient care functions. Nursing schools may be accredited by either the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) or the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).Graduate educationAdvanced education in nursing is done at the master's and doctoral levels. It prepares the graduate for specialization as an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) or for advanced roles in leadership, management, or education. The clinical nurse leader (CNL) is an advanced generalist who focuses on the improvement of quality and safety outcomes for patients or patient populations from an administrative and staff management focus. Doctoral programs in nursing prepare the student for work in nursing education, health care administration, clinical research, public policy, or advanced clinical practice. Most programs confer the PhD in nursing or Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP).Advanced practice registered nurse (APRN)Areas of advanced nursing practice include that of a nurse practitioner (NP), a certified nurse midwife (CNM), a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA), or a clinical nurse specialist (CNS). Nurse practitioners and CNSs work assessing, diagnosing and treating patients in fields as diverse as family practice, women's health care, emergency nursing, acute/critical care, psychiatry, geriatrics, or pediatrics, additionally, a CNS usually works for a facility to improve patient care, do research, or as a staff educator.Licensure examinationCompletion of any one of these three educational routes allows a graduate nurse to take the NCLEX-RN, the test for licensure as a registered nurse, and is accepted by every state as an adequate indicator of minimum competency for a new graduate. However, controversy exists over the appropriate entry-level preparation of RNs. Some professional organizations believe the BSN should be the sole method of RN preparation and ADN graduates should be licensed as "technical nurses" to work under the supervision of BSN graduates. Others feel the on-the-job experiences of diploma and ADN graduates makes up for any deficiency in theoretical preparation.RNs are the largest group of health care workers in the United States, with about 2.7 million employed in 2011.It has been reported that the number of new graduates and foreign-trained nurses is insufficient to meet the demand for registered nurses; this is often referred to as the nursing shortage and is expected to increase for the foreseeable future. There are data to support the idea that the nursing shortage is a voluntary shortage.In other words, nurses are leaving nursing of their own volition. In 2006 it was estimated that approximately 1.8 million nurses chose not to work as a nurse. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that 296,900 healthcare jobs were created in 2011. RNs make up the majority of the healthcare workforce, therefore these positions will be filled primarily by nurses. The BLS also states that by 2020, there will be 1.2 million nursing job openings due to an increase in the workforce, and replacements.With health care knowledge growing steadily, nurses can stay ahead of the curve through continuing education. Continuing education classes and programs enable nurses to provide the best possible care to patients, advance nursing careers, and keep up with the Board of Nursing requirements. The American Nurses Association and the American Nursing Credentialing Center are devoted to ensuring nurses have access to quality continuing education offerings. Continuing education classes are calibrated to provide enhanced learning for all levels of nurses. Many States also regulate Continuing Nursing Education. Nursing licensing boards requiring Continuing Nursing Education (CNE) as a condition for licensure, either initial or renewal, accept courses provided by organizations that are accredited by other state licensing boards, by the American Nursing Credentialing Center (ANCC), or by organizations that have been designated as an approver of continuing nursing education by ANCC.There are some exceptions to this rule including the state of California, Florida, and Kentucky. National Healthcare Institute has created a list to assist nurses in determining their CNE credit hours requirements. While this list is not all-inclusive, it offers details on how to contact nursing licensing boards directly.Board certificationProfessional nursing organizations, through their certification boards, have voluntary certification exams to demonstrate clinical competency in their particular specialty. Completion of the prerequisite work experience allows an RN to register for an examination, and passage gives an RN permission to use a professional designation after their name. For example, the passage of the American Association of Critical-care Nurses specialty exam allows a nurse to use the initials 'CCRN' after his or her name. Other organizations and societies have similar procedures.The American Nurses Credentialing Center, the credentialing arm of the American Nurses Association, is the largest nursing credentialing organization and administers more than 30 specialty examinations.

I can just tell you about our country.Over the course of its magnificent history, India has been led by the most charismatic of leaders who have guided this country’s people and served as an inspiration for all of us. Let us pay tribute to 26 of them:1. Pt. Jawaharlal NehruThe first prime Minister of India ruled a chaotic newborn country right from its independence in 1947 until his death in 1964. Nehru’s legacy is that of an extremely liberal, socialist and secular leader, who under the apprenticeship of Mahatma Gandhi, firmly put India on the course in which it runs today. Nehru was a man of letters and is also credited with creating the Planning Commission of India.2. B. R. AmbedkarOne of the greatest personalities ever born in India, Ambedkar was a jurist, political leader, philosopher, anthropologist, historian, revolutionary, writer and much more. He was a revolutionary leader and held forth on his views even if they went against the popular grain. He also revived Buddhism in India, a legacy still seen in Dalit communities, who’s cause Ambedkar championed throughout his life. Ambedkar is also known as the Father of the Indian Constitution, on behalf of which the nation celebrated Republic Day.3. Atal Behari VajpayeeThe recipient of the Padma Vibhushan in 1992, he is one of the most respected political leaders in India’s history. The only prime minister to serve a full term outside the Congree Party, Vajpayee was known to be a liberal within the BJP, a party with extreme right views. He fearlessly led the nuclear tests in4. Lal Bahadur ShastriFilling the boots of Jawaharlal Nehru was never going to be an easy task, but Lal Bahadur Shastri did just that, and with elan. He gave India a slogan ‘Jai Jawan Jai Kisaan’ and worked extensively for farmer sector in India in continuation of Nehru’s socialist policies. India’s decisive victory in the war against Pakistan in 1965 while he was Prime Minister elevated the country’s mood after its defeat to China earlier and turned him into a hero to cherish forever.5. Sardar Vallabhbhai PatelIndia was not inherited as a whole piece of land upon Independence. It was divided into princely states whose leaders demanded uncontrolled privileges or sought to remain as neutral territories. Dealing with each of them sternly and firmly earned Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel the sobriquet of India’s Iron Man. He also established the civil services division in Indian administration.6. Subhash Chandra BoseThough he served as a member of the Indian National Congress only for a small duration, he had a great impact on the country’s armed forces. One of the few leaders who supported armed revolt to overthrow British rule in India, Bose even formed an army that reported to him called Indian National Army and sought the support of Japan to defeat Britishers in the country. Although his Army failed to directly drive out the British, former Britain PM Clement Atlee conceded that Bose’s activities played a major role in the withdrawal of Britain from India.7. Indira GandhiIndira Gandhi served as a Prime Minister for 11 years and is credited for initiating the Green Revolution in India. The only child of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira wielded a lot of influence in the Congress Party and the sentiments of the public. She was known to be ruthless during her term as Prime Minister that lifted India out of a policy quagmire and firmly placed the development of the country on the fast track. A controversial figure because of the Emergency and subsequent assassination in the aftermath of Operation Blue Star, Indira was named as India’s greatest Prime Minister at the turn of the century.8. Dr. Rajendra PrasadRajendra Prasad was the first President of independent India. He is also considered to be one of the architects of India’s Republic and also served as the president of India’s Constituent Assembly. Prasad is credited with being bipartisan and acting on merit. He is still the only President to have been elected for the President’s position twice.9. APJ Abdul KalamThe man with the frizzy hair and India’s favourite grandpa, APJ Abdul Kalam was one of the most proactive President of recent times. He is also known as People’s President and India’s Missile Man for advancing India’s ballistic missile programs. Known for championing youth causes’, Kalam also launched the What Can I Give movement in 2011 to defeat corruption and realize his life goal of turning India into a developed country by 2020.10. Dadabhai NaorojiOne of the earliest political leaders of India, he was also involved in business like cotton trading. He was also one of India’s early educationists and sought to clear concepts of Zoroastrianism amongst the local populace in Bombay. Naoroji was also a Member of Parliament (MP) in the House of Commons between 1892 and 1895 in the UK, becoming the first Asian to be a British MP.11. Jyoti BasuJyoti Basu holds the record for serving as the longest chief minister of any state in India after holding that post in power from 1977 to 2000 in West Bengal as a CPI(M) politician. He was also one of India’s most well-known atheists. Basu designed the land reform plan in India and initiated panchayati raj for farmers in West Bengal. Never one to follow Communism by the book, Basu made it his mission to give the lower strata of society its due and always upheld communal harmony.12. Shashi TharoorOne of the most charming leaders in the country today, Shashi Tharoor is also the country’s most well-known diplomat and writer from the political stream. Tharoor is known to have his own views about various issues plaguing the country and is not afraid of being vocal about them. Some of his comments have earned him the ire of the Congress party and he has also been dragged into the Kochi IPL controversy, but his popularity amongst the youth especially, is unwavering. Tharoor is also one of the most tech-savvy politicians who created a direct channel with Indians with his Twitter account.13. E M Sankaran NamboodiripadWhen he took oath as the first chief minister of Kerala, E M Sankaran Namboodiripad or EMS as he was known, also became the first Communist leader to have been elected democratically in India. EMS pioneered the land and education system in Kerala that has become a model for other states and contributed to the rise and rise of literacy in Kerala. He also played an active role within the CPI(M) party and brought it to national prominence in the 60s and 70s. Besides this, he was a well-known journalist and writer as well.14. N.T.Rama RaoN.T. Rama Rao, popularly known as NTR, served as CM of Andhra Pradesh for three terms riding on the back of his immensely successful films, in which he mostly played deities Rama and Krishna. His portrayal of mythological characters translated into record wins from audiences when he decided to turn into a politician by founding the Telugu Desam Party. NTR was known to be passionate about the Andhra cause, equal rights for women and introduced many populist schemes for his state. He was an astute politician and was also involved in forming the National Front that ruled the country from 1989 to 1991 under which the Mandal Commission’s recommendation of implementing 27 per cent reservations for OBCs was implemented.15. M. G. RamachandranM. G. Ramachandran, or MGR for his fans, was one of the most influential politicians in Tamil Nadu. MGR was a superstar actor in Tamil films and joined the Congress party after being influenced by Gandhian values. He later joined the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and became as popular in the party as he was among his film fans. In 1972 he formed his own party called Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and riding on his popularity emerged as the chief minister of Tamil Nadu in 1977 and remained so until his death in 1987. He was known for his focus on education and the earliest proponents of mid0day meals that incentivized children to attend schools. MGR was also known for his philanthropic activities. The frenzy and looting that followed his death remains unparalleled to this day and is a testament to his popularity.16. Sonia GandhiSonia Gandhi is about to complete 15 years as the President of the Indian National Congress Party. Keeping the grand old party of India under check and voicing her opinions ever so often on the state of the affairs in the country. Sonia Gandhi’s legacy will never be fully known unless somebody spills the beans on how much influence she actually wields in government decisions. She is known to have played an important role in passing important bills such as National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and the Right to Information Act. The cash transfers scheme for poor people is the latest initiative from Sonia Gandhi.17. Rajiv GandhiOne of the most dashing leaders the country has ever seen, Rajiv was the man behind diminishing the License Raj, gave a push to science and technology and also introduced the telecommunication revolution in India. He took office as Prime Minister of India at the age of 40 after his mother Indira was assassinated in 1984. In the elections held immediately thereafter, the Congress party won an unprecedented 411 seats out of 542 across the country. Known to be a patron of arts, Rajiv also introduced INTACH in 1984 to preserve India’s rich heritage.18. Manmohan SinghManmohan Singh may be a much reviled figure today but no one deny his contribution in lifting the country out of an economic morass in 1991 by opening up the economy. The transformation from socialism and capitalism was a long time coming and Manmohan ensured that the transition went off smoothly. Under his leadership, India achieved the US $ 1 trillion economy milestone. The strong growth recorded by the country over the past few years must go to Manmohan and team.19. Zakir HussainDr Zakir Hussain was the first Muslim President of India and the founder of Jamia Milia Islamia, one of India’s most recognized university. His dedication to education and efforts to keep Jamia Milia Islamia running even under dire circumstances earned him praise from unexpected quarters, including arch rival Mohammed Ali Jinnah. The current foreign minister Salman Khurshid is the grandson of Dr Hussain.20. P. V. Narasimha RaoNarasimha Rao was the Prime Minister when Manmohan Singh opened up the economy in 1991, a role for which he is known as the Father of Indian Economic Reforms. He also introduced computer based trading system of the National Stock Exchange in 1994 and encouraged FDI inflows into the country to revive its flagging economy. He also took important decisions that strengthened the internal security of the country. An astute politician, he passed several important laws through a mixture of cunning and guile even though he headed a minority government.21. Morarji DesaiIndia’s first non-Congress Prime Minister, Morarji Desai was the architect of India’s nuclear program. A strict follower of Gandhi’s non-violence movement, his peace overtures were so successful that Desai remains the only politician to have received Pakistan’s highest civilian award Nishan-e-Pakistan from President Ghulam Ishaq Khan. Desai is also credited with promoting social, health and administrative reforms in the country.22. Sunil DuttIndia’s only worthwhile sports Minister, Sunil Dutt is a well-known former actor. He later joined the Congress party and was elected for a record five terms to Parliament. Dutt was known to be a pacifist leader and promoted communal harmony in Mumbai. He also founded the Nargis Dutt foundation to treat cancer patients. Dutt was one of the rare actor-turned-politician who genuinely sought to change the state of the country in his own way.23. Narendra ModiNarendra Modi has the power to divide opinions into two polar opposites. If you see him as the force behind the 2002 riots in Gujarat then you will have to turn a willful blind eye to the economic prosperity and sense of pride he has infused in his community. His supporters call him a tight-fisted leader while his detractors call him a mild dictator. Whichever way you look at it, Modi’s legacy in politics is undoubtable.24. Jairam RameshAs our economy has grown in leaps and bounds, the ecology has suffered in equal measure. Mining and logging rights have been given at throwaway prices to corporate, escalating the conflict with Maoists in the country. Into this mess Jairam Ramesh sought to create a clear and transparent way of dealing with rights, clearing the Forests Rights Act bill and halting the controversial genetically modified food production in India.25. Jayaprakash NarayanJayaprakash Narayan has been an important leader who first came into prominence for opposing Indira Gandhi at the height of her powers. In 1974, he called for a peaceful Total Revolution after leading a students’ movement in Bihar. Although he never became a force to reckon with within politics, Narayan was the first leader who commanded huge crowds for his political stands, a position that was taken over by Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal recently.26. Nitish KumarImage Credit: Ã�� BCCLOne of the cleanest ministers to emerge out of Bihar in recent times, Nitish Kumar, a protégé of Jayaprakash Narayan, is also known as an efficient taskmaster. Under his rule, the state recovered from massive economic collapse and powerful corruption. Kumar fast tracked development projects, appointed over a lakh teachers to improve education standards and most importantly, brought crime under control in Bihar, a state long known for its lawlessness. Bihar is slowly turning a corner with migrants from the state eager to take part in the success story created under Kumar’s rule.

Q. Had Lieutenant Colonel Peter Dewey not been mistakenly killed by the Vietnamese, would the Vietnam War still have happened?TL;DR: The Vietnam War probably would still have happened since his death occurred in 1945, when the situation was still fluid and not yet at the turning point.I will not claim that Colonel Dewey could have influenced American policy on Vietnam, though of all the Americans in Saigon in 1945, he was the one with the best political connections in Washington both through OSS and through his father, who was a member of Congress. But it was a tragic mistake that he should have been killed by people he was trying to help and a terrible irony that he should have died in what he called "a pop-gun war" on the day he was supposed to go home after surviving all sorts of dangers during World War II. George Wickes, now a professor of English literature at the University of Oregon, then a 22 year old serving in the Office of Strategic Services [OSS].The point to realize here is that in 1945, in the southern portion of Indochina, much more so than in the north, there were many diverse political and religious groups. The Viet Minh didn't control the south, in fact no one group did. In truth, the French were probably in the best position to bring everything back together again and prevent massive bloodshed. While there might be some validity to the revisionist argument that the U.S. should not have backed the French in Vietnam, that turning point had not been reached in 1945. This article was originally published in Behind The Lines magazine and authored by Gary Linderer.A. Peter Dewey - WikipediaA. Peter Dewey, Lieutenant Colonel, United States ArmyINDO-CHINA REBELS KILL U.S. OFFICERSlay Lieutenant Colonel A. Peter Dewey From AmbushBritish Arrest Commander of JapaneseSAIGON, French Indo China, September 26, 1945 Lieutenant Colonel A. Peter Dewey of Washington, D.C. was killed and Captain Joseph Coolidge of New Hampshire was seriously wounded by Annamese in disorders today.Other American officers, defending United States headquarters from a siege of three hours, killed at least eight natives.British, French and Japanese also suffered casualties in a series of incidents. As a result of the continued disorders, Field Marshall Count Juichi Terauchi, the Japanese commander, was placed under house arrest.Colonel Dewey was the senior American officer for the Office of Strategic Services in Saigon and was returning from a visit to Captain Coolidge in a nearby hospital to his headquarters in a suburban mansion when he was killed.He was driving a jeep with Major Herbert Bluechel, former movie chain operator of San Francisco and San Anselmo, California. Major Bluechel told of the tragedy:“We were returning to the O.S.S. hostel when we passed through a partial double roadblock. As we drive through, Annamese in a ditch beside the road opened with a machine gun not ten yards away. The charge caught Peter in the head.”“The jeep overturned in the ditch. I saw Peter was dead and I couldn’t help him, so I crawled from under the jeep. While the Annamese still were firing, I crawled along a hedge for 150 yards, firing my .45 back at them, slowing them down. When I reached the house I alerted the other offices and we broke out the arsenal. The Annamese besieged the house for about three hours until British Gurkha troops arrived. The natives had cut our telephone wires and I had to radio O.S.S. headquarters in Kandy, Ceylon, who radioed the British in Saigon to send help.”Captain Coolidge was shot through the stomach and an arm while returning from Dalat, seventy miles north of Saigon, with a four-car British party. Escorting Japanese troops refused to fire at the Annamese and a Japanese officer refused to order them to fire.Finally, forty Japanese who had been summoned by a Japanese bystander arrived and halted the shooting, but took no action against the Annamese.The incidents were the first involving American forced in Indo-China, although widespread disorders against the French have been reported throughout the Kingdom of Annam where a nationalistic group – the Vietnam – has rebelled against the return of French rule. The Vietnam with Japanese approval announced the independence of Annam last March.Vietnam guerrillas cut roads from Saigon to the airfield Tuesday, attacked British power stations and occupied some suburbs. An Annamese leader said then that the Vietnam planned no violence but intended starving out the European population by cutting off food supplies.There was still no electricity or water in the city and the people appeared panicky because of the deterioration of the food situation.The British Chief of Staff under Lieutenant General Douglas d. Gracey has divided Saigon into two command areas for control purposes and flew in 300 more Gurkha troops.Colonel Dewey’s father, former Representative Charles Dewey of Illinois, said that his son had served with both the Polish and American armies in World War II and had won a decoration for having organized the French underground in southern France.Stationed in Paris at the outbreak of the war as a correspondent from the Chicago Daily News, Colonel Dewey enlisted in the Polish army as a Lieutenant. Following the fall of France, he escaped through Spain to Portugal, where he was placed in an internment camp.Later he was released and returned to this country where he enlisted and served as an intelligence officer with the Air Transport Command in Africa. Transferring to the OSS, he rose to the Captaincy of a paratroop unit and parachuted into southern France five days before the American invasion to organize the underground.Colonel Dewey was education at St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire, in Switzerland and at Yale University.American Battlefield Monument CommissionMajor Albert P. Dewey MajorUS Army Service #0-911947United States Office of Strategic ServicesEntered the service from State: IllinoisDied 26 Sept 1945Awards: Silver Star, Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster, French Croix de Guerre, French Legion of Honor Chevalier, Tunisian Order of Nicham-el-OftikharThe OSS and Ho Chi Minh - latest bookHo Chi Minh and the OSS - good readsHenry A Prunier- Army operative who helped trained Vietnamese troops dies at 91Origins of the American War in Vietnam: The OSS Role in Saigon in 1945 (JapanFocus)Ho and Giap along with members of the OSS "Deer team"6 September 2005Major A. Peter Dewey was the first American soldier to be struck down by Communist bullets in what would later become America's longest and most controversial war.Dewey's main purpose when he arrived in Saigon on the 4th September 1945 was to arrange for the repatriation and evacuation of U.S. POWs being held there by the Japanese. When he landed at Tan Son Nhut Airport on that first day of what were to be the last three weeks of his life, American fighting men had been involved in an air and naval war with the Japanese in the skies and water of Indochina for nearly three years. Even the harbour of Saigon had been raided and bombed by U.S. carrier based aircraft.The OSS team that Major Dewey headed, code name Project EM BANKMENT, was to locate 214 Americans at two Japanese camps in Saigon. The majority of them had been held in Burma for most of the war and employed, as slave labour building a railroad line that was to cross the Kwai River, later made famous by the movie Bridge On The River Kwai.Camp Poet in Saigon held five POWs, and Camp 5-E, just outside of Saigon, contained 209. Of these, 120 were from the 2nd Battalion, 131st Field Artillery of the 36th Division, a National Guard antiaircraft outfit from Texas that had landed in Java by mistake and had been captured intact. They would later become known as the “Lost Battalion.” Of the remaining POWs, 86 were survivors of the cruiser Houston, sunk on the night of 28-29th February 1942 off the coast of Java. Their fate was also unknown until Dewey liberated them. The other eight were airmen shot down over Indochina.Peter Dewey was born in 1916 in Chicago, had been educated in Switzerland, St. Paul's School (London), Yale (where he studied French history) and Virginia Law, and head worked as a journalist in the Paris office of the Chicago Daily News. While reporting on the German invasion of France for his paper, Dewey decided to become more directly in volved. In May 1940, during the Battle of France, he enlisted as a lieutenant in the Polish Military Ambulance Corps with the Polish army then fighting in France.This was somewhat to be expected for his father, Charles S. Dewey, who was a conservative, anti-New Deal isolationist and former Republican congressman from Illinois, had at one time been an international banker with the Northern Trust Company of Chicago as a financial advisor to the Polish government. After World War I, he had played an important part in the establishment of the modern Polish fiscal system.After the Petain government capitulated, Dewey somehow escaped to Portugal through Spain where he was placed in an internment camp. Later, when he was released, he returned to the U.S. and wrote a book entitled, As They Were, about the French defeat. Not able to stay away from the action for long, he then joined Nelson Rockefeller's Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs as that agency's liaison to de Gaulle's Free French.In August 1942, Dewey entered the U.S. Army as a lieutenant and served as an intelligence officer with the Air Transport Command in Africa. Finding that he had been rejected as “unsuitable” in a request to transfer to OSS, he took his case to the head of that organization, an old family friend, General Bill Donovan. After his second try was successful, he lad a parachute team of three Americans and seven Frenchmen in August 1944 in to South Western France. The operation, named ETOILE, was to provide coordination between the Allied commander of the invasion of southern France (DRAGOON) and the left-wing maquisards along the Spanish Republican frontier. These forces, it was known, were under Spanish Republican command and were planning for an invasion of Franco Spain as soon as the Germans left. In circumstances that Dewey would find repeated in Saigon, the political delicacy of the task was compounded by the many different organizations of the region oriented in every which direction. There was even some concern that the Gaullist Etoile mission would be in as much danger from “friendly” forces as from the Wehrmacht.With Dewey in the B-17 that departed on 10th August 1944 from Blida Airport outside Algiers, was Jack Hemingway, son of Ernest Hemingway. In what must be considered on of the oddities of gear ever taken on a combat operation behind enemy lines, Jack jumped with his trout rod strapped to his leg. However, considering the terrain that they parachuted in to (a thirty mile wilderness at the headwaters of the Loire) perhaps the fishing gear was intended for survival.At the beginning, the operation started of badly. Dewey and his group landed over 20 miles from their intended destination. Then the linkup with the second drop (consisting of the French contingent for the operation) was not completed until five days later. The linkup problems were compounded by the Gaullist team losing their radio during the jump. It was only after they had “borrowed” a radio from local peasants and arranged for an emergency re-supply that the entire team go together.By now it was 15th August, DRAGOON D-day, and Dewey was to learn that his original mission had been changed due to the undreamed success of the invasion assault ashore. His task now was to concentrate on intelligence gathering on the left flank of the DRAGOON forces in their movement up the Rhone Valley toward the southern German border.Dewey, with the help of the maquis, was able to find the headquarters of the Corps Franc de la Montagne Noire. As a result, Mission Estoile's first intelligence report was also one of its most important: Information on the details of the Wehrmacht's withdrawal was immediately transmitted to the invasion fleet. U.S. carrier based Hellcat fighter-bombers were able to intercept these forces with devastating results. It was also learned that the Germans would not stand in the French Alps as had been expected, but on the German Rhine.Soon afterwards, Dewey's team began a 600-mile journey through enemy territory in what was to become an OSS legend. Travelling in two captured German Volkswagen staff cars with an escort of maquisards, they sent back valuable intelligence as well as destroying two German Mark III tanks and capturing one (it was given to the maquis to use) along with nearly 400 German prisoners. It was also one of Dewey's reconnaissance teams that replaced the American Flag after its several years in absence on the American Embassy in the capital of the French New Order, Vichy.On the 5th September, Dewey and his team met Donovan at Seventh Army forward headquarters. Dewey was greeted with the promise that he would be made a lieutenant colonel, a promise that was to be kept shortly after his death just over a year later.Returning to Washington in October, Dewey worked on the OSS history project under the direction of New Yorker columnist Geoffrey Hellman. In July 1945, he was selected to head up the OSS team that would enter Saigon after the Japanese surrender. But difficulties arose when British Major General Douglas D. Gracey, commander of occupation forces in Indochina south of the sixteenth parallel (the Potsdam Conference split the reoccupation of Indochina between the British and the Chinese) objected to an American presence and sought to bar their participation. However, Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten intervened, and Dewey's team of OSS men was allowed to leave Ceylon for Saigon on the 1st September.Preceding Dewey was an advance element of Embankment, a prisoner of war evacuation team that was parachuted in to Saigon. After stops at Rangoon and Bangkok, Dewey and the remaining members of his team landed at Tan Son Nhut on the 4th September. There they were met by members of the Japanese high command and enthusiastic crowds of Vietnamese. On the following day, the surviving American prisoners of war were flown out of Saigon on seven DC-3's. Until the 12th September the OSS team was the only Allied presence in Saigon. On that day, the first British soldiers (an Indian Ghurkha division from Rangoon) flew in at about the same time as a company of French Paratroopers from Calcutta.In the interim, the Americans under Dewey's command, made contact with the “Committee of the South.” Set up by the Viet Minh, the Committee advocated “peaceful tactics” in the belief that they could prevent the return of the French through negotiations and with Allied help – Russian, Chinese and American. Opposing the Committee were the pro-Japanese Phuc Quoc Party as well as the United National Front comprised of Trotskyites, Cao Dai, Hoa Hao and other nationalist groups. They maintained that independence could not be supported by negotiations alone and fuelled that contention with rumours that the British planned to bring back French colonial rule. Stirring the pot was the Binh Xuyen (Saigon gangsters), who were taking advantage of the confusion to wreak havoc.It is anyone's guess why Dewey and his team remained in Saigon beyond the 12th September, by which time their primary goal had been accomplished. That they were OSS, and as such undoubtedly had secondary intelligence type missions, is a distinct possibility. More likely, with the war effort rapidly winding down, no one quite knew what to do with them, as the bureaucracy hadn't caught up to them yet. However, the events on Sunday the 23rd September did catch up to Major Dewey and were to indirectly cost him his life. On that morning, before first light, the French forces under the command of Colonel Jean Cedile took over the control of all the main buildings of Saigon. When the curfew was lifted at 5.30 am, the French citizenry bean a day long orgiastic fit of violence in the name of revenge for “Black Sunday.”As the senior American in Saigon, Dewey attempted to register his complaint with Gracey whose job it was as commander of the British forces in Saigon to disarm the Japanese. It was Gracey's order that released and armed the interned French troops, and it was Gracey who failed to act to prevent the bloodshed. On the next day, the 24th of September, suspecting Dewey of having connived with the Viet Minh and having interfered with British control Gracey declared Dewey persona non grata and ordered him out of the country. Major Dewey had two days to life.At 9.30am on the morning of the 26th of September 1945, Major Dewey was scheduled to fly out of Tan Son Nhut airport to Kandy, Ceylon. With him on his trip to the airport was his deputy, Captain (later Major) Herbert J. Bluechel. Upon arriving at the terminal it was learned that Dewey's flight was delayed and would not leave until noon. Returning to the Hotel Continental in the centre of Saigon, where he had been staying, Dewey was to discover that one of the members of his team (Captain Joseph R. Coolidge) had been shot and wounded at a Viet Minh roadblock ten miles outside of Saigon on the previous night. Dewey and Bluechel then drove to the British 75th Field Ambulance Hospital and briefly saw Coolidge who was suffering from a serve neck wound. In what was to prove ironic, Coolidge had been shot by the Vietnamese after speaking French and apparently being mistaken for a Frenchman.After arriving back at the airport at 12.15 pm, the two OSS officers found Dewey's flight had been further delayed. It was decided that they would eat lunch at the OSS headquarters located in the Villa Ferier just North East of the airport. With Dewey driving, they went past the golf course at the end of the runway and left the airport by the rear entrance. In the process, they passed near the spot where the spot where the last American, of many, was to die nearly thirty years later. For the previous several days many of the roads in the Saigon area had been blocked by the Viet Minh in an attempt to stop the movement of Allied forces. One of these roadblocks consisting of brush and tree limbs was a short distance down the road from the Villa. Both officers were familiar with it, having driven around it several times in the previous few days, including once that very morning.This time it was different. Major Dewey, having reduced speed to about five miles per hour, noticed several Vietnamese hiding in the ditch alongside of the road. Shaking his fist at them, he yelled something in French that Captain Bluechel was not able to understand. At this time he was shot in the head by a burst of automatic weapons fire and killed instantly. After Dewey was shot, the jeep rolled in to the ditch and overturned. Captain Bluechel was not hit in the initial burst of fire and was protected by the jeep chassis from subsequent firing. Crawling in the ditch and running behind a row of hedges while firing his .45 calibre pistol at the Vietnamese, Bluechel was able to reach the OSS headquarters a short distance away. U.S. soldiers that were there, along with server war correspondents, held off the attacking Vietnamese in a battle that lasted several hours.Accounts vary, but at least three to eight Vietnamese were killed while the Americans suffered no further casualties. In trying to call for help, it was discovered that the telephone lines had been cut. Being unable to contact anyone locally, Bluechel radioed OSS Headquarters Detachment 404 in Kandy, Ceylon, which in turn radioed the British in Saigon. The rescue was accomplished by two platoons of the 31st Ghurkha Rifles around 3.00 pm. Evacuation of all personnel to the Continental Hotel in downtown Saigon was completed by 5.00 pm.There can be no doubt that the Vietnamese knew that the Villa Ferier was an American compound. However, Dewey's jeep was not marked as to nationality; therefore, upon hearing him speak French it is probable to assume that he was mistaken for a Frenchman. His body was never recovered, making him the first American MIA in Vietnam, even though Ho Chi Minh ordered the Viet Minh to find it so that it could be returned. A reward of 5,000 piasters (an astronomical sum at that time) was offered by them for the Major's body. For a short period, charges of plots and counter plots were raised by the war correspondents in the press around the world.The Japanese had been providing support to the Vietnamese dissident groups since the early 1900s and had provided arms to the Cao Dai Church's private army in the Saigon area during the war. Realizing this the British blamed the Japanese and placed Field Marshal Count Terauchi Hisaichi, the Japanese commander in Saigon, under house arrest. The French suspected the Americans of being anti-colonialist and the Vietnamese accused the French of creating the incident. The French, of course, said that the Viet Minh were guilty of cold-blooded murder, while some Americans, to complete the circle, pointed the finger at the British SOE claiming that they were attempting to remove their OSS competitors from Vietnam.The point to realize here is that in 1945, in the southern portion of Indochina, much more so than in the north, there were many diverse political and religious groups. The Viet Minh didn't control the south, in fact no one group did. In truth, the French were probably in the best position to bring everything back together again and prevent massive bloodshed. While there might be some validity to the revisionist argument that the U.S. should not have backed the French in Vietnam, that turning point had not been reached in 1945.The final chapter of this saga was told in 1981 by a Vietnamese refugee who had escaped from Vietnam to France. In a statement made to the U.S. Embassy in Paris, it was learned that Dewey was ambushed by a group of Advance Guard Youth (military arm of the Viet Minh to Committee of the South). Led by a Vietnamese named Muoi Cuong, the group burned Dewey's jeep and dumped his body in to a nearby well. Later, fearing discovery when they learned Dewey was an American, they recovered his body from the well and buried it in a nearby village of An Phu Dong. Both Cuong and his deputy Bay Tay, a deserter from the French colonial troops, were later killed fighting with the Viet Minh against the French.This article was originally published in Behind The Lines magazine and authored by Gary LindererSeptember 26, 1945: A. Peter Dewey becomes first American casualty in Vietnam.Air Force Tech Sergeant Richard B. Fitzgibbon, Jr., murdered in Vietnam by a fellow airman on June 8, 1956, has been formally recognized by the Pentagon as the first American officially to die in that war.With this decision, the Defense Department set November 1, 1955, as the earliest qualifying date for inclusion on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. It says this is the date the MAAG was officially established. Eight other pre-1961 casualties are already listed on the memorial.The first death of an American serviceman in Vietnam occurred September 26, 1945. OSS (Office of Special Operations) Major (Lieutenant Colonel) A. Peter Dewey was killed in action by the Communist Vietminh near Saigon.Some 128 members of a MAAG began supervising the use of U.S. equipment in Vietnam on Sept. 17, 1950. And two U.S. fliers contracted by the CIA were killed in action flying missions over Dien Bien Phu in 1954. The first U.S. advisors sent to actually train Vietnamese troops arrived February 12, 1955. Captain Harry Cramer, Jr., was killed in a munitions-handling accident October 21, 1957: His name had been the first listed.There is another unique aspect to this story: Marine Lance Corporal Richard B. Fitzgibbon III -- his son -- was killed in action in Vietnam on Septtember 7, 1965. The Fitzgibbons are the only father-son honorees on the Wall.When Fitzgibbon's name is added to the Wall before Memorial Day 1999, the total number of names memorialized will be 58,214.WWII Veteran was First American MIA in War Against Ho Chi Minh's ForcesLieutenant Colonel Peter Dewey of the U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS), became the first American MIA in Vietnam on September 26, 1945, when he was ambushed by Ho Chi Minh's forces (Vietminh). During World War II, the OSS, predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), trained and armed Vietminh guerrillas in the jungles of northern Vietnam to fight the Japanese.Ho had just organized a "broad" communist front of "patriots of all ages and all types, peasants, workers, merchants and soldiers," to drive both the Japanese and French out of Vietnam. His new organization, led by communists, appealed to many Vietnamese with nationalist sentiments. After the Japanese surrendered, Ho used the Vietminh as a power base for a Vietnamese nationalist movement to prevent the French from reestablishing colonial rule.Dewey, the son of a conservative Republican Congressman from Chicago, (Charles S. Dewey) was the head of a detachment of seven OSS agents assigned to Saigon to search for and liberate Allied prisoners of war still being held by the Japanese.He alienated the French and British hierarchy by making contact with the Vietminh. Major General Douglas D. Gracey, commander of a British force in Vietnam assigned there to disarm the Japanese, suspected Dewey of "conniving" with the Vietminh and ordered him out of the country.Before leaving, Dewey summed up the situation in Vietnam: "Cochinchina is burning, the French and British are finished here, and we [the United States] ought to clear out of Southeast Asia." Dewey and a colleague, Captain Herbert J. Bluechel, headed for the Saigon airport in a jeep with Dewey driving.Dewey took a shortcut past the Saigon golf course, where he encountered a barrier of logs and brush blocking the road. After braking to swerve around it, he noticed three Vietnamese in the roadside ditch. He shouted angrily at them in French. Presumably mistaking him for a French officer, the Viet Minh replied with a burst of bullets that, according to Bluechel, blew off the back of Dewey's head. Bluechel, unarmed, ran from the scene with a bullet knocking off his cap as he fled. Dewey's body was never recovered. French and Viet Minh spokesmen blamed each other for his death.In the fall of 1997, at an off-season hotel on Long Island, Vietnamese and American veterans gathered to recall when they had first met - fifty years ago in Hanoi or Saigon or the jungle headquarters of the Viet Minh along the Chinese border.Both they and US-Vietnamese relations had been young and hopeful. Among those who attended the conference was George Wickes, now a professor of English literature at the University of Oregon, then a 22 year old serving in the Office of Strategic Services [OSS], who seized the opportunity to see more of Asia than he already had and joined a small OSS mission to Saigon in September 1945. His account of that trip and a subsequent one to Hanoi in the spring of 1946 recalls, with a kind of straightforward eloquence, a moment when Vietnamese independence seemed possible, even imminent.There are many points in Vietnam's thirty year war for independence when the historian wishes to freeze the frame. How easy it would have been for an accommodation to have been reached - in 1945 or 1954 or 1960 or 1963, millions of deaths before 1975. The force of George Wickes' memoir of the time he spent in Saigon and Hanoi in 1945 and 1946 lies here, in one's sense of the possibility that the United States government, like its O.S.S. field operatives, could have chosen for Ho Chi Minh rather than against him. There is an abundance of irony in this short, straightforward account: the death of Peter Dewey at the hands of those whose cause he supported, the use of Japanese troops under British command to burn the villages of Vietnamese the Allies were supposed to have liberated, the arrival of Wehrmacht veterans fresh from the battlefields of Europe to support the French colonial cause. The excerpts from letters Wickes wrote his parents at the time are as eloquent as they are prescient and his brief portrait of Ho Chi Minh, with which the account concludes, is especially powerful.At the end of World War II I was in Rangoon serving as a soldier in the U. S. Army assigned to the military intelligence organization called the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Shortly after the Japanese surrender the OSS sent small teams of officers and men to the principal cities of Southeast Asia. Their mission was partly military (e.g., repatriating American prisoners of war, locating the graves of Americans killed during the war, and investigating war crimes), but in the absence of other representatives of the American government (e.g., the State Department), they also performed some peacetime functions, notably monitoring the political situation. When I heard that an OSS team was going to Saigon, I went to see the officer in command, Colonel Peter Dewey, and told him I wanted very much to go with him. He was unimpressed when I told him I had studied Vietnamese under the Army Specialized Training Program but asked if I knew French. When I replied that I had learned French at my Belgian mother's knee, he gave me a one-word oral exam: "What is the French word for 'street'?" He was not testing my vocabulary but my pronunciation, for "rue" is one French word few Americans can pronounce properly. Colonel Dewey, who spoke flawless French himself, was satisfied with my pronunciation and said, "All right, you can go. Be ready at 2:30 tomorrow morning." So on September 4, 1945, we took off for Saigon. But first Dewey pinned second lieutenant's bars on me. Of the eight OSS men going on the mission I was the only enlisted man and as such would be unable to deal with British and French officers. Similarly, Dewey upgraded the rank of some of the officers on the mission so that they could deal with British and French colonels and generals. All this was of course unofficial, but the OSS was a very informal organization that readily disregarded inconvenient Army rules and regulations. In Saigon we were to live like civilians, and the military life seemed far away. Our arrival in Saigon was quite dramatic. We were the first Allied soldiers to land there, and despite the surrender in Japan, we were not at all sure of the reception that awaited us. Southern Indochina was occupied by some 72,000 Japanese troops. Would they accept the surrender? We need not have worried. When we landed at Tan Son Nhut, some fifty of the highest-ranking Japanese officers were lined up on the tarmac waiting to receive us most respectfully. In the coming weeks the Japanese were to do exactly what they were told to do, which often meant serving as police and even at times as soldiers against the Vietnamese, sometimes even under the command of British officers.Major General Gracey, the British commanding officer who arrived some time after we did, saw it as his mission not only to return southern Vietnam to the French when they were able to take over but meanwhile to put down Vietnamese resistance. Under the terms of the Allied peace accords, Vietnam was divided at the 16th parallel, with the British temporarily in command in the South and the Chinese in the North until such time as French forces could replace them. General Gracey, who was an old-fashioned product of the British Empire, brought with him colonial troops from India: Gurkhas and Sikhs and Punjabis, the kind of troops that had fought the Japanese and could be commanded to fight the Vietnamese. In all fairness, I must say that some of General Gracey's staff officers, even high-ranking professional soldiers, did not share his views at all.During our first few days we stayed at the Continental Hotel in the center of Saigon, where we were enthusiastically welcomed by the French residents and introduced to the French colonial way of life. But we soon moved out to a villa on the outskirts of town that had been occupied by a Japanese admiral, and there I spent most of my time during the next two and a half weeks, working with our communications officer, Lieutenant Frost, and our young Thai radio operator who went by the name of Paul. I had been trained as a cryptographer by the OSS, and my primary job was encoding and decoding messages to and from our headquarters in Southeast Asia. Our messages, which were then forwarded to Washington, reported on the activities of our team and on political developments in southern Vietnam. These reports would now make interesting reading and should by rights be available under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, but to date all attempts to obtain copies have been frustrated. I know they still exist, for I once met an American Foreign Service officer who had read them and who was able to discuss the situation in Saigon in 1945 knowledgeably and with great interest. That was in 1963, yet in 1997, over half a century after we sent our reports, they are still inaccessible.I do have some documentation of my own in the form of letters home, which my parents carefully preserved. But no letters survive for the period between September 8 and September 25, when I would normally have written two or three times, so I can only conclude that the military censor destroyed those letters because he felt they contained information that should be kept secret. Even though the war was over, the censor was still at work, as I know from passages that were sliced out of other letters. As a rule I was quite "security conscious," as OSS personnel had been trained to be, but in my letters during the period in question I may have reported something of my clandestine" activities. For it was during this period that I met several times with representatives of the Vietnamese independence movement. Although I spent most of my time at the villa away from the center of things, I was kept well informed of developments by the members of our team who kept an eye on the doings of the French, the British, the Vietnamese, the Japanese, the Chinese. They were all caught up in the intense atmosphere of intrigue that prevailed in Saigon and all talked about it when they returned to the villa.Colonel Dewey talked to me most of all, and I was impressed by his account of what was going on. He had spent the first year of the war in France, reporting on the political situation and serving as an ambulance driver with the Polish army; then as an OSS officer he had been with the French in North Africa and had parachuted into occupied France, where he had engaged in legendary exploits. But what impressed me most was his interpretation of the complicated political maneuverings of the different individuals and factions represented in Saigon, which he frequently explained to me. He was obviously contemplating a diplomatic career, and he encouraged me to do so too. I was 22 at the time and beginning to think about what I would do after leaving the army. Dewey had established contacts with the Viet Minh and perhaps other Vietnamese organizations. Because he was well known to the French and the British, both of whom objected to his contacts with "the enemy," he could not very well meet with any Vietnamese without being observed. So he sent me several times to meet with them in the evening. The streets were dark, there were still many former prisoners of war floating about, and I would dress as they did in order to escape notice. I would go to a house on a quiet street and there meet for perhaps two hours with three or four men who were obviously deeply committed to the liberation of their country.I have a very clear memory of those meetings but unfortunately no recollection of the names of the Vietnamese I met and only a general recollection of our conversations, which were conducted in French. I know that they were leaders in the independence movement and wanted us to let Washington know that the people of Vietnam were determined to gain their independence from France. During the war they had listened to Voice of America broadcasts which spoke of democracy and liberty, and they regarded the United States not only as a model but as the champion of self-government that would support their cause.Three months later I learned that the French had put a price on my head, though in reality they had attached my name to Dewey's head. The description was of a balding man with a mustache who was six inches shorter than me. Obviously this was Peter Dewey, and the only reason my name was involved was that someone must have learned of my meetings with members of the Vietnamese independence movement. I don't believe I was ever in any danger, but clearly Dewey was persona non grata on account of his sympathy with the Vietnamese cause. As a matter of fact, all members of our mission shared his views, and our messages to Washington predicted accurately what would eventually happen if France tried to deny independence to Vietnam. This is only one of he many ironies of Saigon 1945.Another was the death of Peter Dewey. On the morning of September 26 he went to the airport, where he was to be met by an American Transport Command plane from Bangkok and flown on his way home to be discharged from the army. But the pilot got drunk the night before and failed to appear on schedule. At midday Dewey decided to return to the villa by a cross-country route that he had taken before. There had been skirmishing in the countryside around Saigon, which was controlled by Vietnamese guerrillas, with roadblocks t strategic points. Such a roadblock was just down the road that passed in front of our villa, and as Dewey was going through that roadblock he shouted something in French at the Vietnamese who were posted there. Major Bluechel, who was with him, did not understand French but knew that Dewey was upset because one of our officers had been severely wounded in an ambush on his way back from Dalat the night before and supposed he shouted something about that. Dewey had wanted to fly the American flag on the jeep, but General Gracey had forbidden it, saying that only he as commanding officer had the right to fly his flag. Thus there was no way for the Vietnamese to know that this was an American jeep or that these were American officers. No doubt they took Dewey to be a Frenchman, and when he shouted at them, they opened fire with their machine gun, killing im instantly. The jeep overturned, but Bluechel was able to get away, running to our villa. The Vietnamese pursued him and attacked the villa, but though only three of us were able to shoot back, we succeeded in driving them away.At the same time Frost radioed an SOS, and the British sent a troop of Gurkhas to the rescue. They proceeded as far as the roadblock, which had been abandoned by then, but did not find Colonel Dewey's body or the jeep. In fact, the body was never found, though it was my grisly task for some time afterward to peer into newly dug graves where it was alleged to be buried. I will not claim that Colonel Dewey could have influenced American policy on Vietnam, though of all the Americans in Saigon in 1945, he was the one with the best political connections in Washington both through OSS and through his father, who was a member of Congress. But it was a tragic mistake that he should have been killed by people he was trying to help and a terrible irony that he should have died in what he called "a pop-gun war" on the day he he was supposed to go home after surviving all sorts of dangers during World War II.So we moved back to the Continental Hotel, which was to remain our headquarters for the duration of our stay in Saigon. In fact, we now owned the hotel and paid no bills. The real owner, M. Franchini, loved Americans because they were good for business. He sold the hotel to Major Frank White for $2, thus placing it under American protection, and was then able to demand exorbitant prices of the many terrified French residents who wanted to sleep under the same roof. For a time Saigon was a city under siege. Lieutenant Frost and I, located with our radio in the annex of the Continental Hotel, had a good view from our balcony over the roofs of the city. Mostly we heard rather than saw the action. Things were generally calm during the day, but after nightfall we began to hear the sound of gunfire, beginning with the occasional stray shot by a jittery French soldier.The French Foreign Legion, which had been interned by the Japanese the previous March, had now been released, with the result that its troops were trigger-happy and spoiling for a fight. With their release the shooting started in earnest. They defended the city, together with their new allies, the 6,000 Japanese troops stationed in Saigon. Every night we could hear Vietnamese drums signalling across the river, and almost on the stroke of 12, there would be an outburst of gunfire and new fires breaking out among the stocks of tea, rubber, and tobacco in the dockyards. One night the sound of machine gun fire and mortars and grenades went on for three hours. The following morning we were told that the Japanese had repulsed a Vietnamese attack across one of the bridges into the city. Though all this shooting made us somewhat nervous, we all grew daily more sympathetic with the Vietnamese. We no longer had any contact with representatives of the independence movement, but the French colonials we met made us increasingly pro-Vietnamese with their constant talk of how they had done so much for this country and how ungrateful the people were and how they would treat them once they regained control. They never made the slightest suggestion that there was any self-interest in "la mission civilisatrice de la France." We knew a few French people we could respect but had no use for most of them, and our feelings were shared by Colonel Cedile, the new governor of Cochinchina who had been sent out from France by General de Gaulle; he would have liked to ship every colonial back to France and bring in an entirely new set of officials. Our views were also shared by the Free French soldiers who now began to arrive. Ironically, some of them thought they had come to liberate Vietnam.Also ironically, the Foreign Legion brought some new recruits who spoke only German: seasoned veterans who had fought the war in Hitler's army. Of course the Legion has always accepted volunteers with no questions asked. At the beginning of October General Gracey finally agreed to meet with the leaders of the Viet Minh who had been asking to see him ever since his arrival. Thereupon an armistice was declared, and things quieted down for a while, but only long enough for the British and French to bring in reinforcements: more Indian troops and French troops from France. Then the armistice was unofficially suspended, units of the British Indian Division went on the attack, cannon fire could be heard throughout the day, and the sky became dirty with smoke from fires set by British troops. French warships appeared in the river and on the coast, and on October 6 General Leclerc, the so-called liberator of Paris, arrived to take command. Suddenly there were French flags flying everywhere and portraits of de Gaulle in every shop window. (A month earlier, when we arrived, the Vietnamese flag was flown alongside those of the Allied nations, and the portrait on display was that of Marshal Petain, the leader of the Vichy government.)But the greatest event for the French of Saigon was the reopening of their country club, le Cercle Sportif. Wars and regimes and occupations could come and go, but life was not worth living without le Cercle Sportif. We went to the grand opening at the suggestion of Major White, who with his journalist's sense of irony noted that British officers were now being feted by the same French residents who had collaborated and fraternized with the Japanese during the occupation. At his suggestion we went again a few days later and observed the social life of Saigon while the sound of cannon fire boomed regularly in the background and ashes from burning Vietnamese villages drifted down on the tennis courts. Ever since our arrival in Saigon former prisoners of war had been part of the street life--British, Australian, and Dutch, waiting to be repatriated. Just as the last Dutch P.O.W.s were leaving to go off and fight for a lost cause in Indonesia, a new kind of P.O.W. began appearing: hundreds of manacled Vietnamese being led through the streets in small groups by the French police. At the same time Vietnamese guerrillas launched their biggest midnight attack on the city, as if to serve notice that they had no intention of giving up the struggle.But by the end of October the fighting had quieted down around Saigon, with only occasional skirmishing and sniping. Instead of doing battle with regular troops, guerrillas cut roads and bridges, burned buildings and stockpiles. Already it was becoming apparent that thousands of soldiers might have a hard time overcoming the resistance of a population of millions. In the middle of November I made a trip into the country north of Saigon--to investigate the latest report that Dewey's grave was to be found in the cemetery of Thu Dau Mot. The effort was futile, as I knew it would be, and it seemed pointless to go to such lengths to recover a body, but the trip gave me the opportunity to learn how the British conducted their campaigns when I stayed with a regiment of Gurkhas. I liked the Gurkha soldiers and their British officers, and I like to think that they were going through the motions without taking things too seriously. After all, it was not their war, and firing cannonades into the peaceful countryside seemed about as futile and pointless as searching for Dewey's body. It was on this occasion that I learned that some of the officers had led companies and battalions of Japanese soldiers in their "sweeps" of the country much as they led their Gurkhas now.In a letter I wrote to my parents a few days later I gave my opinion of the political and military outlook:"I do have some very reassuring information from Hanoi (Viet Minh Headquarters). It seems they are well-organized and realistic with a cosmic view of things. But France is determined to keep Indochina, determined enough to send out 120,000 troops. My visit to Thu Dau Mot also provided some information: that the Annamites have some military organization and that without the Japanese the task of clearing areas would be well-nigh impossible without large numbers. Also that the British have no great opinion of the French as soldiers. "A small percentage of Annamites are determined to sacrifice all and have a specific plan of action, but most of them, passively at least, want independence. The French are not quite so confident as they were at the start that this would be cleared up in a few weeks. And I believe that, unless they always keep large garrisons and patrols everywhere, they will not be able to keep the country submissive as it was before. The Annamite's great advantage lies in the fact that he is everywhere, that he does not need to fight pitched battles or organize troops to be a threat and that no amount of reprisal can completely defeat him. I cannot say how it will end, but at least it will be a long time before Frenchmen can roam about the country with peace of mind."I do not recall how I acquired that "very reassuring information" from Viet Minh headquarters in Hanoi. I do not believe I could have been in touch with the Viet Minh in late November, but I could have heard from one of my friends in OSS who had been a fellow student in the Vietnamese language program. Four of them were in Hanoi, and another had just arrived in Saigon. Or I could have heard from someone like my friend Captain annerjee, a very political and very astute Communist in the British Army, or Roger Pinto, a French professor who had made a study of Vietnamese politics during the war when he was interned for being a Jew.My departure from Saigon on or about December 6 was as sudden as my arrival. Without any warning I was told to leave on twenty-four hours' notice. It seems that U.S. Army Headquarters in India had just discovered that I was impersonating an officer and had ordered OSS to have me cashiered. To save its own face, OSS simply transferred me to its headquarters in Singapore. There I was allowed to choose my next assignment and asked to be sent to Bangkok. OSS sent me by sea as an escort for an American car that was being shipped to the U.S. Legation in Bangkok. Of course this was only a pretext to give me a pleasant leave in the form of a cruise on the South China Sea. What OSS did not plan is that the freighter would first stop off in Saigon to deliver cargo, arriving there on December 25. So I was able to spend a four-day Christmas vacation with my former colleagues in Saigon before the ship sailed again. Three of the original officers who had arrived in early September were still there. One of them, Major Frank White, had been our chief liaison with the British all along and had maintained good relations with British intelligence as well as other sources. He had been a journalist before the war and was to be a very successful journalist again after the war; meanwhile he was the most knowledgeable and enterprising officer on the mission. He had always been quite friendly with me, and now he made a proposal that appealed to me at once: that we try to obtain authorization to go to Hanoi to interview Ho Chi Minh.A. Peter Dewey: The United States' First Casualty in Vietnam - The History ReaderPosted on September 26, 2012By Callie OettingerSeptember 26, 1945, A. Peter Dewey was killed in Vietnam, becoming the first casualty in what would become the Vietnam War.From Mark Thompson’s Time article “War Through ‘Enemy’ Eyes“:America’s first casualty in Vietnam was a mistake. He was an Army officer by the name of A. Peter Dewey. A member of the Office of Strategic Services — the forerunner of today’s CIA — Dewey arrived in Vietnam two days after Japan surrendered on September 2, 1945. His assignment was to help search for MIAs and to assist the English general who had just arrived in Saigon in maintaining order in the southern half of Vietnam. As he observed the English general treat the Vietnamese as a conquered people rather than an ally who had helped defeat the Japanese, Dewey voiced his displeasure to Washington. He quickly fell out of favor with the English general, who managed to get Dewey recalled to Washington.Just before Dewey left for Saigon airport to head home, he filed his last report on Vietnam. In a hauntingly ominous observation, he wrote: “Cochinchina (South Vietnam) is burning; the French and British are finished here, and we ought to clear out of Southeast Asia.” Although Dewey’s final report was received in Washington, he never made it home. He was ambushed on the way to the airport by Viet Minh (precursor to the Viet Cong) soldiers who mistook him for a French officer. Dewey not only became the first American post-World War II casualty of Vietnam, but also the first MIA there as well as his body was never recovered.From WGBH’s 1981 Interview with Herbert Bluechel, who was with Dewey when he was killed:So if you turned the corner uh to take the road leading to our headquarters, parallel to our headquarters, we encountered a roadblock and uh consisting of some logs and some brush and, in order to get through the roadblock we had to make a sort of an inverted “S”. . . .Well, with that, we were just on the spade edge of the “s” heading for the ditch and machine gun opened up, and the burst caught Peter in the back of the head, on the left side. The jeep continued and tipped on its side.And um, I grabbed a hold of Peter but…he was dead, ’cause machine gun burst had hit him, exclusive, didn’t hit me at all and there weren’t even any, as I recall, no bullet holes through the windshield, so he caught the full burst.Well the ditch was about four or five deep ‘n, four or five feet deep and next to the ditch on the other side it’s a hedge, hedge is about three feet thick, maybe six, eight feet high. Uh, firing continued, rifle fire, but the chassis of the jeep protected me.I had a forty-five in my holster and I had three clips, total of twenty-one rounds of ammunition. Peter had a carbine, thirty caliber carbine in the jeep. I grabbed that. It jammed right away, it was, I don’t think it’d been fired in months and months and months. So I, I had to get, get out of there.I went back to the jeep again and checked on Peter and nothing I could do for him. So I made my way around the hedge to…the other side of the hedge is a golf course. So, the hedge protected me too and I made way down the hedge. People came around the end of the hedge and started firing at me. There were about fifteen or twenty.And there’s firing coming through the hedge, too, but I slowed ‘em down with the forty-five and uh ’till I got down to the edge of the hedge, then there was no more protection and they were still coming and I had two rounds left, so I took off across the golf course, I had to run about roughly five hundred yards to our headquarters.Then they fired everything, shot my hat off, went through my trousers, but they didn’t hit me. Just lucky. Hmm. So I went to the, arrived at headquarters, and um, Captain Frank White was there and he had two war correspondents, guests for lunch. Sergeant Wicks was there. And we broke out our arms and uh we had a pitched battle for about an hour or so. Turns out that Peter Dewey was the first American to be killed in Vietnam. Huh.From the New York Times‘ September 26, 1945 article “Indo-China Rebels Kill U.S. Officer: Slay Lieut. Col. A. Peter Dewey From Ambush—British Arrest Commander of Japanese“:Lieut. Col. A. Peter Dewey of Washington, D.C., was killed and Capt. Joseph Coolidge of New Hampshire was seriously wounded by Annamese in disorders today.Other American officers, defending United States headquarters from a siege of three hours, killed at least eight natives.British, French and Japanese also suffered casualties in a series of incidents. As a result of the continued disorders, Field Marshal Count Juichi Terauchi, the Japanese commander, was placed under virtual house arrest.Summarized letter from Ho Chi Minh to President of U.S., expressing sympathy at the death of Colonel Peter Dewey, O.S.S. Commander in Saigon. Enjoins President to provide advance notice of movements of American nationals, but expresses appreciation for “U.S. stand for international justice and peace.” Image and caption: Pentagon Papers, Part I.