| Kern W. Dunagan | |
|---|---|
Medal of Honor |
|
| Born | February 20, 1934 Superior, Arizona |
| Died | December 27, 1991 (aged 57) |
| Place of burial | San Francisco National Cemetery San Francisco, California |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Unit | 46th Infantry Regiment, Americal Division |
| Battles/wars | Vietnam War |
| Awards | Medal of Honor |
Kern W. Dunagan (February 20, 1934 – December 27, 1991) was a United States Army officer and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in the Vietnam War.
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Dunagan joined the Army from Los Angeles, California, and by May 13, 1969 was serving as a captain in Company A, 1st Battalion, 46th Infantry Regiment, Americal Division. During a firefight starting on May 13 and finally ending on May 14, 1969 in Quang Tin Province, Republic of Vietnam, Dunagan showed conspicuous leadership as he organized his men and rescued wounded soldiers despite his own serious wounds.
Dunagan was wounded on two occasions during this ferocious battle. Still, with his company of soldiers, they successfully fought off wave after wave from a battalion of Viet Cong Regulars in near, hand-to-hand combat conditions. Dunagan was 1st wounded in the early evening of May 13 during a mortar attack. He refused to be evacuated and thus, separated from his men.
Throughout the ensuing night of May 13 and morning of the 14th, the attack was unrelenting and Dunagan was again seriously wounded for a 2nd time. Again, he refused to be evacuated. In the end, after losing many of his men during those two days, Dunagan was finally able to maneuver his men by way of a plan struck in the final hours of daylight of May 14, 1969.
Dunagan and the base commander, Colonel Underhill, of LZ Professional, decided to have the base artillery units attempt to throw up as much smoke - in as many ways they could muster - to conceal Dunagan and his men as they made their final attempt to escape an extremely aggressive enemy. Had the plan not worked, it was considered doubtful that Dunagan and the men of Company A would have survived.
The U.S. base's barrage of incendiary, artillery rounds seemed to make the difference as Dunagan and his remaining troops were afforded a blanket of smoke in which to make their way across a wet, soggy, open field. Under constant fire, attempting to reach the perimeter of LZ Professional, there was no guarantees the plan would work.
Eventually, most of the surviving men made their way back. Yet, not all was secured, as the battalion of N. Vietnamese Army was aggressively following the men of Company A. After Dunagan insisted on going back into the inferno to look for surviving soldiers, he finally located one wounded soldier. Placing the soldier on his shoulders, Dunagan busted his way back to the perimeter of LZ Professional. Once there the base commander, Colonel Underhill, ordered a massive bombing of the North Vietnamese position.
Captain Dunagan spent the next weeks of May and June, 1969, in Tokyo, Japan. After surgeries to repair his wounds and recuperation, he was sent stateside to resume his career. In 1985, a skin cancer, melanoma, was found in a mole on Dunagan's neck. The cancer would eventually metastasize in his inner organs and in 1991, Dunagan passed away.
Dunagan was subsequently promoted to major and awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions.[1]
Dunagan reached the rank of colonel before leaving the Army. He died at age 57 of cancer and was buried in San Francisco National Cemetery, San Francisco, California.[2]
Major Dunagan's official Medal of Honor citation reads:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Maj. (then Capt.) Dunagan distinguished himself during the period May 13 and 14, 1969, while serving as commanding officer, Company A. On May 13, 1969, Maj. Dunagan was leading an attack to relieve pressure on the battalion's forward support base when his company came under intense fire from a well-entrenched enemy battalion. Despite continuous hostile fire from a numerically superior force, Maj. Dunagan repeatedly and fearlessly exposed himself in order to locate enemy positions, direct friendly supporting artillery, and position the men of his company. In the early evening, while directing an element of his unit into perimeter guard, he was seriously wounded during an enemy mortar attack, but he refused to leave the battlefield and continued to supervise the evacuation of dead and wounded and to lead his command in the difficult task of disengaging from an aggressive enemy. In spite of painful wounds and extreme fatigue, Maj. Dunagan risked heavy fire on 2 occasions to rescue critically wounded men. He was again seriously wounded. Undaunted, he continued to display outstanding courage, professional competence, and leadership and successfully extricated his command from its untenable position on the evening of May 14. Having maneuvered his command into contact with an adjacent friendly unit, he learned that a 6-man party from his company was under fire and had not reached the new perimeter. Maj. Dunagan unhesitatingly went back and searched for his men. Finding 1 soldier critically wounded, Maj. Dunagan, ignoring his wounds, lifted the man to his shoulders and carried him to the comparative safety of the friendly perimeter. Before permitting himself to be evacuated, he insured all of his wounded received emergency treatment and were removed from the area. Throughout the engagement, Maj. Dunagan's actions gave great inspiration to his men and were directly responsible for saving the lives of many of his fellow soldiers. Maj. Dunagan's extraordinary heroism above and beyond the call of duty, are in the highest traditions of the U.S. Army and reflect great credit on him, his unit, and the U.S. Army.[1]