BOMBING OF THE CAU LONG BIEN BRIDGE IN HANOI ON 11 AUGUST AND THE EFFECT OF THE

Created: 9/1/1967

OCR scan of the original document, errors are possible

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Intelligence Information Cable

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APPROVED FUR REltASi DATE

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BCKBTNG OF TEE CA'J LONG BTEN BRUATE IN HASOIUGUST ANDOF THEN ZASOI

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XCJLrTOMAS L. HUGHES

EXCLUSIVE FOR GENERAL car! LLL

EXCLUSIVE FOR ARMY ACSI, GENERAL YARBOROUGE;

NAVY Dm. AMORAL FLUCKEY

AIR FORCL ATv'J, GENERAL thomas

EXCLUSIVE FOR GENERAL CJCZR

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1. OKUGUST THE CAU LOKG BISK BRIDGE CONXZCTINC HANOI AND THE GXA LAX AREA

ACROSS TEE RE) RIVER MAS BOMBED. THE KtlDGE CROSSES A3 ISLAND IN TEE RED RIVER AND

ABOUT ?ORTT METERS C? THE BRIDGE SURFACE BETWEENAAT) AIQ OIA LAN WAS COMPLETELY

DESTROYED WHILE ANOTHER THIRTY KETERS OF THE SURFACE WAS SEVERELY TWISTED. THERE ARE

ETS OF BRIDGE PIERS BETWEEN THE ISLAND AND TEE GIA LAM SIDE OP THE RIVER AND THE

PIERS ARE ALTERNATIVELY SINGLE, THEN DOUBLE, THEN SINGLE, ETC. COUNTING FRCK THE

ISLAND SIDE TOWARDS GIA LAM THE TWO PIERS IK THE FOURTH ELSE (C THE SECOND -DOUBLE SET

OF PIERS) VERS DESTROYED BY THE BOMBING. ONE OP THE TWO PIERS WAS COMPLETELY DESTROYED AND

THE OTHER IS VISIBLE ABOVE THE SURFACEHE WATER BUT DOES NOT' REACH THE BRIDGE. AS

OPUGUST. THERE WAS NO INDICATION THAT TEE VTETNAXESE BAD MADE ATC EFFORT TO REPAIR - .

THE BRIDGE TTSEL? ALTHOUGH WORKMEN HAD REPLACED TEE POWER AND ELECTRIC LINES CROSSING

THE BRIDGE WHICH HAD BEEN DESTROYED WHEN THE BRIDGE WAS BOMBED.

r 2. SINCE"UGUST TRAFFIC CROSSING THE RED RIVER AT THE BRIDGE HAS BEEN

HANDLED BY TWO OLD FERRY BOATS, EACHARGE -LIKE BOAT. THESE FERRIES CARRY

VXDUALS AS WELL AS VEHICLES UP TO AND INCLUDING MEDIUM SIZED TRUCKS.

BACKLOGSSUCC TRAFFIC OP A3 MANYEHICLES WERE OBSERVED OH BOTE SIDES OF

THE RIVER DURING THEUGUST, 3UT THE BACKLOGS NEVER APPEARED TO HAVE

EALLY SEVERE STAGE AND USUALLY DISAPPEARED DURING TEE DAY. THE PERRIES

WERE HAVING SQX2 TROUBLE MANEUVERING BECAUSEEE DIFFICULTYOWING BARGES AGAINST

'ii'.THE RIVER CURRENT; THEY FREQUENTLY WENT UPSTREAM AND LET THE CURRENT OF THE RIVER AID

I KEF. I*WO OTHER OLD FERRY BOATS WERE TIED UP ALONG ThXRIVER SANA BUT Did NOT APPEAR TO BE IN USE. SHALL CHAFT TRAFFIC .

ACROSS THE RIVER" DID NOT NOTICEABLY IwCREASE AFTER THE BRIDGE WAS CUT* 'j

i. SOURCE COMMENT: ULTIMATE SOURCE WAS FRANKLY SURPHISED THAT NO APPARENT EFFORT WAS MADE TO USE SMALL BOATS OS SAMPAN TYPE CRAFT TO TRANSPORT PEOPLE ACROSS THE RIVER. HE WAS ALSO SURPRISED THAT THERE DID NOT APPEAR TO BE ANY MAJOR BLOCKAGE OF TRUCK TRAFFIC. HE VISITED THE HANOI. WATtRFRONT ALMOST DAILY BET WEE.'. II AMDUGUST AND DID NOT CETECT ANY SIGNSFFORTS TO BUIlD ALTERNATE MEANS OF CROSSING THE RIVER, SUCH AS PONTOON BRIDGES. SEVERAL VIETNAMESE .NOTED THAT THE RIVER^ IS SUITE HIGH AT THIS TIME OF YEAR AXD THAT IT WOULD BE DIFFICULT TO BUILD AND.ONTOON BRIDGE.

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Original document.

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