[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 54 (Thursday, April 3, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E505-E507]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING ROBERT HARBULA
______
HON. MICHAEL F. DOYLE
of pennsylvania
in the house of representatives
Thursday, April 3, 2014
Mr. DOYLE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to one of my
constituents who is truly an American hero.
Mr. Robert Harbula of West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, fought bravely as a
U.S. Marine in the Korean War--including the Battle of Chosin
Reservoir. Private First Class Harbula served in G Company of the Third
Battalion of the First Marine Regiment, part of the First Marine
Division, in the Korean War. His unit was referred to initially as
``George Company'' and then, later, after Chosin Reservoir, as ``Bloody
George.''
Private First Class Bob Harbula was assigned to the Marine unit
guarding Camp David, the Presidential retreat, when he served as an
usher for the Washington, DC, premiere of ``Sands of Iwo Jima'' in
January of 1950. After seeing the movie, he decided that he ought to
get a more dangerous posting, so he volunteered for a marine raider
unit several months later. Soon thereafter, he ended up in Camp
Pendleton as part of the First Marine Division--and in August 1950, he
found himself on a troopship headed for Japan with the First Marines as
one of the early reinforcements for the hard-pressed UN forces in
Korea. Mr. Harbula was part of the machine gun squad attached to G
Company's First Platoon.
Korea had been occupied for 35 years by Japan until the end of World
War II, at which point it was partitioned at the 38th Parallel. South
Korea was occupied and protected by US forces. North Korea was occupied
by the Soviet Union. UN plans to hold elections and unify the country
were rejected by the Soviets, and a communist dictatorship was
established in the north.
On June 25th, North Korean troops crossed the boundary separating
North and South Korea, taking the ill-prepared South Korean Army by
surprise and overwhelming it. Three days later, the North Korean army
occupied Seoul, the South Korean capital. US troops from the Eighth
Army based in Japan rushed to aid the South Koreans. They were thrown
into battle piecemeal in a desperate effort to gain time for more
reinforcements to arrive. South Korean troops and the US 24th Infantry
Division fought the North Korean troops relentlessly, inflicting
substantial casualties, but they were repeatedly defeated by superior
numbers and forced to retreat. By August, US and South Korean forces
had been pushed back to a fragile perimeter around the port city of
Pusan in the southwest corner of the Korean peninsula. Despite repeated
North Korean attacks, the Pusan Perimeter held and bled the North
Koreans dry.
General Douglas MacArthur, commander of US forces in the region,
decided to launch a major amphibious landing deep in the North Korean
army's rear at the port city of Inchon on Korea's west coast. Mr.
Harbula's unit was in the first wave of the assault craft, which landed
under heavy fire on September 15th. From that moment on, George Company
was in nearly constant combat as US forces captured Inchon and fought
their way into Seoul, where the fighting often deteriorated into
vicious house-to-house combat. On the night of September 25th, George
Company--heavily outnumbered--stopped a major North Korean
counterattack by tanks, self-propelled artillery, and hundreds of men
along Seoul's Ma Po Boulevard. Mr. Harbula and his section did what
they could, firing a machine gun non-stop at the lead tank. With
artillery support, George Company withstood and repelled the attack--
but at a terrible cost.
The Inchon landing and the liberation of Seoul caused the weakened
and over-extended North Korean forces in the south to collapse and beat
a panicked retreat northward. The US Eighth Army began pressing
northward in aggressive pursuit along Korea's west coast. The X Corps,
which included the First Marine Division, was pulled out of the line
and loaded onto amphibious transport ships. They sailed around the
Korean Peninsula and disembarked at the end of October in the port of
Wonsan on North Korea's southeastern coast, which had already been
secured by South Korean units.
George Company's first assignment after landing at Wonsan was holding
a village called Majon-ni several miles inland at the junction of roads
leading to Seoul, Wonsan, and Pyongyang. On November 2nd, PFC Harbula's
machine gun squad was helping to escort a re-supply convoy through a
treacherous mountain gorge when it was ambushed. Bob Harbula provided
cover, firing a .30 caliber machine gun from the hip, while the
surviving trucks were carefully turned around on the one-lane, cliff-
edged road and driven out of the ambush to Wonsan, where they reported
to headquarters and requested a rescue mission for the remaining
survivors.
George Company garrisoned Majon-ni for several weeks after the
ambush. PFC Harbula took command of his 10-man machine gun squad after
the sergeant who had been in charge was seriously wounded in the
ambush. On November 14th, George Company moved north to the Hungnam-
Chigyong region. That same day, a cold front moved into the region from
Siberia, sending temperatures as low as -35 degrees each night. Such
brutal weather would continue for the next two weeks, making weapons
and equipment inoperable and causing thousands of injuries and deaths
from frostbite and exposure over the course of the battle.
The rugged Taebaek Mountains that ran up the middle of the Korean
peninsula divided the Eighth Army from X Corps as each force pushed
north. On November 24th, MacArthur ordered the ``Home by Christmas''
offensive to conquer all of North Korea up to the Yalu River, which
formed the boundary between North Korea and China. The Eighth Army was
to push north, while the First Marine Division was to push west from
the Chosin Reservoir, cut off a North Korean major supply line, and
link up with the Eighth Army.
Unbeknownst to General MacArthur and his advisors, hundreds of
thousands of Chinese troops had begun infiltrating into North Korea in
mid-October. The General and his staff thought that there were only a
few small Chinese units fighting in North Korea. In fact, Chinese
troops were massing for attacks in both the east and west. In the east,
the 9th Army Group of the Chinese ``People's Volunteer Army'' had
encircled most of the Chosin Reservoir, a large man-made lake north of
Wonsan and 65 miles northwest of the port city of Hungnam.
On November 25th, nearly two hundred thousand Chinese troops launched
a surprise attack on the Eighth Army, defeating it resoundingly in the
Battle of the Ch'ongchion River and sending it retreating southward in
what came to be called ``the Big Bug-out.''
On November 27th, however, the First Marine Division's orders were
still to attack northwestward. Most of the Division's combat troops,
primarily thousands of Marines from the First Marine Division's 5th and
7th Regiments, were positioned around the village of Yudam-ni west of
the reservoir. An understrength regimental combat team from the 7th
Infantry Division held territory on the east side of the reservoir up
through the village of Hudong-ni to Sinhung-ni. A winding narrow road
led through the mountainous terrain from each village to the bottom of
the lake, where they met in the village of Hagaru-ri, which was lightly
defended by a hodgepodge of units from the First Marine Division,
including a number of companies from George Company's First Marine
Regiment. Essential supplies had been stockpiled at Hagaru-ri, and
engineers were desperately trying to build a small airstrip when they
weren't fighting off enemy attacks.
It was 14 miles of treacherous terrain from Yudam-ni to Hagaru-ni. To
the east of the reservoir, it was a similar distance from Sinhung-
[[Page E506]]
ni to Hagaru-ri. From there, the road wound 11 miles through more
mountainous terrain to the town of Koto-ri, where the 1st Marine
Regiment's headquarters was located--defended by the Regiment's Second
Battalion--and then another 10 miles to Chinhung-ni, defended by First
Battalion, First Marine Regiment. From there, it was another 37 miles
to the port city of Hungnam. That one narrow road was the only way
First Marine Division and the other units from X Corps could get out of
the mountains and back to the coast.
Meanwhile, George Company was stuck somewhere in the rear echelons
for lack of transportation.
On the night of November 27th, all hell broke loose. The 9th Army
Group of the People's Volunteer Army attacked the X Corps forces on
either side of the Chosin Reservoir and at various points along the
road as far south as Koto-ri. Tens of thousands of Chinese soldiers
attacked the outnumbered Americans' positions. The Marines at Yudam-ni
were surrounded and cut off, as were the soldiers of the 7th Infantry's
Regimental Combat Team 31 on the east side of the reservoir--and the
Divisional headquarters and elements of the 1st Marine Regiment at
Hagaru-ri.
On the morning of November 28th, George Company finally got some
wheels. They were ordered into trucks and headed north, arriving in
Koto-ri at nighfall.
That night, the Chinese launched a massive attack on Hagaru-ri. They
almost succeeded in overwhelming the outnumbered Marines, who had
thrown every able-bodied man who could fire a rifle into the front
line--down to, and including, the cooks and truck drivers. When dawn
came, the defenses had held, but Chinese forces occupied the strategic
high ground--East Hill--and unless reinforcements arrived, it seemed
inevitable that Hagaru-ri would fall and the units around the Chosin
Reservoir would be doomed.
George Company's 200 men formed part of the 900-man ``Task Force
Drysdale'' that was rapidly thrown together on the morning of November
29th in Koto-ri to reinforce Hagaru-ri. It took the column all day to
fight their way up the 11 miles of road between Koto-ri and Hagaru-ri.
They had to stop repeatedly to clear enemy roadblocks, and they were
under fire the whole time from thousands of Chinese soldiers dug in on
either side of the road. The route was subsequently given the name
``Hell Fire Valley.''
Late in the day, the rear of the convoy was stopped by a burning
truck and surrounded by Chinese troops. Fighting through the night
until their ammunition was nearly all gone, the surviving soldiers
finally had no choice but to surrender.
The front of the column, consisting of the surviving tanks, George
Company, and some of the Royal Marines pushed on and finally broke
through to Hagaru-ri. Only a third of the men who set out that morning
in Task Force Drysdale made it to Hagaru-ri, but the 300 soldiers and
the tanks that made it through Hell Fire Valley at such a terrible cost
significantly bolstered the town's defenses.
The next morning, November 30th, George Company was given the
daunting mission of retaking East Hill. They slowly advanced up the
hill, slipping and falling repeatedly on the ice and taking heavy rifle
and machine gun fire. By the end of the day, they held the south end of
the ridge, but the Chinese still held the center. George Company dug in
as best they could, but the temperature that night dropped below -20
degrees and the ground was frozen hard. Private Harbula was forced to
resort to piling dead Chinese soldiers around his machine gun like sand
bags.
Once it was dark, Chinese forces counterattacked, charging down the
hill several thousand strong. The men of George Company fought
bravely--eventually hand-to-hand. Private Harbula's machine gun jammed,
and his position was overrun by the enemy. An officer ordered the men
to pull back. He remembers hitting one Chinese Soldier in the face with
his helmet and firing his pistol at several others. As he slipped and
slid back down the hill, he fell into a shell crater. In the crater, he
found several dead Americans and one of his comrades, Richard Haller,
still alive but wounded in both legs. Private Harbula carried Haller
down the hill to safety, but he ruptured his Achilles tendon in the
process. Private Harbula was out of the fight, but the surviving
members of George Company fought on. Finally, near dawn on December
1st, the Chinese attack petered out.
December lst was something of a turning point. That day, the Marines
in Yudam-ni began a break-out to the south. By nightfall, they had
fought their way to Toktong Pass, halfway to Hagaru-ri. In addition,
the engineers who had been working on the airstrip completed enough of
the runway that C-47 transport planes could use it. That afternoon,
planes started bringing in supplies and reinforcements and flying out
the wounded.
There was bad news on December 1st as well, however. With half of the
men in Regimental Combat Team 31 dead or wounded, its commander,
Lieutenant Colonel Don Carlos Faith, ordered his troops to destroy any
equipment they couldn't carry and attempt to break through to Hagaru-
ri. As the column advanced, it was attacked constantly by thousands of
Chinese soldiers on each side of the road to Hagaru-ri. As night fell,
Lieutenant Colonel Faith was killed trying to take a roadblock and the
column disintegrated. Many small groups of soldiers fled through the
night and made it to the Hagaru-ri perimeter alive, but everyone who
stayed with the convoy was killed.
Most of the First Division was now reunited in Hagaru-ri. The
remaining able-bodied but exhausted members of George Company continued
to defend the perimeter, moving to one end of the runway on December
5th and repulsing another large Chinese attack.
On December 6th, the First Marine Division began its breakout
effort--or as its commanding officer General O.P. Smith put it, not so
much retreating as attacking in a different direction. George Company
fought its way back down Hell Fire Valley--but this time as part of a
unit powerful enough to defend itself. They reached Koto-ri by the end
of the next day. The retreat continued the following day with the 5th
and 7th Regiments pushing ahead and the 1st Regiment and George Company
acting as a rear guard. Finally, they reached the port of Hungnam,
where an armada of ships evacuated a quarter of a million soldiers and
civilians, as well as a great deal of equipment.
The ``advance in a different direction'' by the ``Chosin Few'' has
become a legendary example of heroism, sacrifice, endurance, and
suffering. Thousands of American soldiers rebuffed surprise attacks by
overwhelming numbers of enemy forces and then conducted a 70-mile
fighting retreat through treacherous mountain terrain in subfreezing
weather.
George Company, now ``Bloody George,'' did their part, fighting their
way into Hagaru-ri, up East Hill, and then--outnumbered 10 to 1--
holding their perimeter against determined enemy counterattack. Private
First Class Bob Harbula served bravely in the Battle of Chosin
Reservoir until he was injured.
Remarkably, several months later, Bob's brother, John, who was a
Marine stationed in Norfolk, saw a Marine on crutches hitchhiking. John
picked him up and they got to talking, and the Marine mentioned that he
was at the Chosin Reservoir with G-3-1. John told his passenger that he
had a brother who had also fought there with G-3-1. The hitchhiker
asked John what his brother's name was, and when John told him that it
was Bob Harbula, the Marine's face turned white and he said, ``that's
the SOB that saved my life!'' John had given a lift to Richard Haller!
Chosin Reservoir didn't mark the end of Bloody George's or Bob
Harbula's combat action in Korea by any means. Soon after, he was back
in combat. On April 15th, 1951, he was promoted to Corporal and put in
charge of 2 machine guns and 20 men at the start of Operation Ripper.
He fought again with G Company in North Korea at the Hwachon Reservoir,
where the First Marine Division was awarded its third Presidential Unit
Citation for action on Hill 902. He was finally rotated home on June 6,
1951.
Mr. Harbula was recently quoted in the McKeesport Daily News as
saying, ``I don't consider myself a hero.'' Well, I think it's safe to
say that the rest of us do. I am grateful to U.S. Marine Corporal
Robert Harbula for his heroic service to our country, and I am very
proud to represent him in the House of Representatives.
Mr. Harbula may not consider himself a hero, but he believes deeply
that his comrades in George Company, especially those who gave their
lives for this country, are heroes who never got the recognition they
deserved. He has endeavored for years to educate the American public
about the critical role George Company played in reinforcing and
defending Hagaru-ri and holding it until the 5th and 7th Marine
Regiments could reach it and the First Marine Division could carry out
its legendary fighting withdrawal.
That may finally be happening some 60-odd years after the fact. In
2010, a writer named Patrick K. O'Donnell published ``Give Me Tomorrow:
The Korean War's Greatest Untold Story--the Epic Stand of the Marines
of George Company.'' The book is based on extensive interviews with the
surviving members of G Company. In addition, earlier this week, the
story of George Company's actions in the Battle of Chosin Reservoir was
the subject of an episode of ``Against All Odds''--a six-part series
about battlefield heroism on the American Heroes Channel--which until
recently was known as the Military Channel.
Mr. Speaker, all Americans can be proud of the fact that in the
course of our nation's history, there have been many inspiring, often
heartbreaking stories of heroes who have given their lives for this
country. There are many, many more Americans who have served this
country who have risked their lives
[[Page E507]]
for this country. Many have come home wounded and disabled. We owe them
all a debt we can never begin to repay. It's my belief, though, that we
should remember them and honor them as best we can for what they've
done. That's why, when I learned about Bob Harbula and George Company's
service in the Korean War, I felt it was only right that I share their
story with you and have it included in the Congressional Record.
Mr. Harbula has spent much of his life trying to call attention to
his brothers in arms--the Chosin Few--so I urge my colleagues to join
me in recognizing the bravery and tremendous sacrifices of Bob Harbula
and the men of Company G, Third Battalion, First Marine Regiment for
their heroic service in the Korean War. God bless them, and God bless
everyone who serves or has served our nation in its armed forces.
____________________