Under Fire

Heroes Remember

Under Fire

Transcript

Interviewer: And walking up those muddy mountains, were you under fire at those time? Oh, yes. Interviewer: So, that's another added part of the adventure? Yeah. Interviewer: So, explain to me if you can, describe to me walking up a muddy slope, nothing to grab onto, and you're under fire. What was that like? It's pretty nerve-racking, but, but as a, as a youngster you really don't . . . It really don't make much difference, no matter where you are, if you're under fire, I guess. It don't really matter where you are. But going up some of these mountains, you're on your belly some of the time. Some of the time, you're on your feet. But when you're under fire, it's, it's scary. Don't ever think it's not scary. I was scared, believe me. Like, when you're under fire, you never know if you're gonna get hit or not. You're hoping you never do. You get down as low as you can, if you happen to be in a slit trench and a, and a mortar bomb comes over, or something like that. You never know for sure until it goes by. You can hear the whistle, and when it quits whistling, you never know where it is. But as long as it's whistling, going over top of you, it's still going. So, you know that you're okay, there. And when they . . . when I was under fire, at sometimes they were rolling, the, the North Koreans and the Chinese, were rolling their grenades and stuff down the hill. Interviewer: Now, all of a sudden, being young and foolish and adventurous looks different from when you were under fire? Yeah, you know you're adventurous, but you never realize what you're really getting into. War is hell.

Description

Mr. Gowing recalls what it was like to be under fire in Korea. He describes taking cover from shells and grenades being rolled down hills, liking it to hell.

Gerald Edward Gowing

Mr. Gowing was born in 1931 in Listowel, Ontario. At the age of nine, Mr. Gowing was taken in by the Stratford division of the Children's Aid Society because his mother had passed away and his father was unable to take care of him. Looking for adventure, and to take part in something with purpose, Mr. Gowing joined the army in October 1950, requesting to serve in Korea. Sent to Calgary, Alberta, for basic training at the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI) barracks, he was only there a few weeks before shipping overseas in January 1951 as reinforcement Bren gunner for the 2nd Battalion PPCLI. Mr. Gowing saw heavy action in Korea, including the Battle at Kapyong (Hill 677) for which the entire battalion was later presented with a Presidential Citation medal, the highest award granted by the United States, outside of the US. Reluctant to return to Canada, Mr. Gowing left Korea in May 1952, after his tour had ended. He left the military in November of 1952, but returned in November of 1955, to serve as a signaller for three years before being discharged for good.

Meta Data

Medium:: Video
Owner:: Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:: 02:41
Person Interviewed:: Gerald Edward Gowing
War, Conflict or Mission:: Korean War
Location/Theatre:: Asia
Branch:: Army
Units/Ship:: 2nd Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry
Rank:: Private
Occupation:: Bren Gunner

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Date modified:: 2019-06-20