The mission receives strong support from local Women’s Union members, military units, donors, and residents, who provide food, supplies, and encouragement to personnel at the site.
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Women’s Union members trek through the mountains carrying food to support soldiers searching for fallen soldiers’ remains at Da Sap Cave. |
The route to the cave stretches more than one kilometer along a steep, rocky mountainside. Narrow, slippery trails make it difficult to transport equipment, tools, food, and other supplies, most of which must be carried by hand.
Conditions inside Da Sap Cave are even more challenging. The site is a complex cave system with multiple branches and deep passages. Its entrance was once collapsed by bombing, leaving large boulders blocking access. The cave is damp, dark, and confined, with a constant risk of rockfalls. Before search personnel enter each area, military engineers must inspect it for unexploded ordnance left from the war.
In some sections, officers and soldiers must crouch or lie on their sides to work. Layers of soil and rock are carefully removed and passed out by hand, while large boulders can take hours to move. Despite the risks, the team continues to expand the search, examining cave branches, rock crevices, and other suspicious locations.
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Paying tribute to the fallen soldiers found at Da Sap Cave |
So far, the team has discovered, exhumed, and recovered the remains of nine fallen soldiers, along with personal artifacts and related relics. The findings have reinforced the assessment that additional remains may still be inside the cave.
Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Huu Dung, political officer of the search and recovery team, said officers and soldiers remain united and determined despite the difficult and dangerous conditions. Each new trace provides another lead and strengthens their resolve to bring the fallen home.
During their journey, the search team is also receiving steady support from Women’s Union members of the Da Nang Municipal Military Command. On weekends, they prepare nutritious meals early in the morning and transport them, along with drinking water and essential supplies, more than one kilometer along difficult mountain trails to the search site.
Non-commissioned Major Hua Thi Lan Chi said that the meals may be modest but carry the members’ affection and sense of responsibility toward the officers and soldiers carrying out the mission.
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Women’s Union members prepare meal portions. |
After hours of working in confined spaces, search personnel gather for meals amid the mountains. Although living conditions are basic, hot food and words of encouragement help ease their fatigue and motivate them to continue.
The Women’s Union has also coordinated with agencies, military units, businesses, benefactors, and donors to provide food, drinking water, essential supplies, and other practical assistance. The support will continue on weekends throughout the search operation.
Building on the findings at Da Sap Cave, the Da Nang Municipal Military Command is reviewing records and documents, interviewing historical witnesses, and cross-checking information from the media, social networks, and local residents to identify other locations where fallen soldiers’ remains may be found.
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Women’s Union members share a meal with soldiers. |
The command is also advising the Da Nang Municipal Party Committee and People’s Committee on establishing a steering committee for the “500-day campaign to accelerate the search, recovery, and identification of fallen soldiers’ remains.” The campaign aims to mobilize the city’s political system, relevant forces, and residents to collect information and support the search, recovery, and identification effort.
Senior Colonel Dinh Van Hung, Political Commissar of the Da Nang Municipal Military Command, said the search would continue as long as information, traces, or suspicious locations remained. “We will stop only after thorough inspections confirm that no suspicious signs remain. This is our responsibility to the fallen heroes and their families, and it is also a command from the hearts of the officers and soldiers of the city’s armed forces,” he said.
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Benefactors present gifts to encourage personnel searching for fallen soldiers’ remains at Da Sap Cave. |
Nine sets of remains have been recovered, but the search at Da Sap Cave continues. As long as information, traces, suspicious locations, and hope remain, the officers and soldiers will continue searching the mountain and its caves, determined to bring those who sacrificed their lives for the country home to their comrades, families, and native communities.
Translated by Tran Hoai