Amb. Quinn recounts how during a medical civic action visit to a remote village in a Viet Cong area of Duc Ton District, a U.S. Air Force Sergeant was blown off a bridge by a helicopter downdraft into 10 feet of water. Unable to swim and sinking below the surface, the Sergeant cried out for help. Amb. Quinn, who was standing on the edge of the swollen canal, plunged in and swam to the man, pulling him back to the bank. Several weeks later, when they met in Sa Dec City, the Sergeant came up to Amb. Quinn saying “I want to thank you, sir. You saved my life.”
THE ARCHIVE OF AMBASSADOR KENNETH M. QUINN
FROM THE MISSISSIPPI TO THE MEKONG