Cu Chi Tunnels is far from Ho Chi Minh city 70 km in the West-North side. The Tunnel system includes clinics, rooms, kitchen, storage, office, working room, underground system. The Tunnels is about 200 km in length and there is ventilation system hidden under the bushes. Tunnels were built in the late 1940s on the land was dubbed the “iron land”, located at the end of the Ho Chi Minh Trail. During Tet 1968 campaign, the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam had used the tunnel system to attack Saigon.
The residents were digging the separated cellars, tunnels to avoid the sweeping raids of the French army and to provide shelter for Viet Minh. Each village built a private tunnel, then, due to demand for travel between tunnels of villages, tunnels systems were connected together to form a tunnels system of continuous, complex, later spread to many places, especially, 6 communes to the North of Cu Chi and structure of the tunnels was improved to become a place for hidden forces, can get in touch and support each other when fighting.
During 1961-1965, the Northern communes of Cu Chi were completed axis tunnel, called “spine”, then, the Unions, Agencies and Units had developed with tunnel branch leading to axis line to form uninterrupted tunnel between the villages, communes and regions. Above ground, Cu Chi army and people was digging trench belt crisscrossed with tunnels connecting, this time fighting tunnels were divided into several floors and corner. Also, inside the tunnels there are many fighting emplacements, minefields, spiked pit, pit against… are arranged in uninterrupted clusters generate strong battle in the guerrilla war, known as communal fighting.
By 1965, approximately 200km of tunnels have been dug. On the scale, the tunnel system with a total route length is over 200km, with 3 different depths, the above layer is far from ground about 3m, the middle layer is far from ground about 6m and the bottom layer deep more than 12m. This time, the tunnel is not only shelter, but also became inhabited, ambulance, meeting, watching film, art,…
However, the life under tunnels is low light, moisture, hot and poor hygiene conditions, so majority of people living in the tunnels are parasites, silvery skin and bone diseases, particularly malaria. Thus, when the war ended, only about 6,000 of total 16,000 officers and soldier still alive. In addition, the lack of food as well as basic necessities is also the biggest problem of tunnel residents.
During the Vietnam war, Cu Chi Tunnels is a big disappointment, difficult question for the U.S. Army and Army Republic of Vietnam. America and Australia have ever tried to detect and break into the Tunnels by many ways, but all of efforts have failed. The U.S. military once even used bulldozers razed the forest around, villages, large fields and sprayed Orange agent, napal bombing, poured gasoline to eradicate animals and plants. However strangely, Viet Minh still remained safe and continue to live, to fight because of country.
Unable to prevail by chemical war, the U.S. military began sending more soldier down the tunnels. These people are called “tunnel rats”. They are quipped with machine guns, knives, flashlights. But with the complexity of the system and there is no way back, most of U.S. soldier dead.
Saw it, the U.S began using German dogs to search the cellar doors and Viet Minh. But the people in the Tunnels disabled the ability of dogs by cleaning with soap, concurrently, using uniform of the U.S. military for making mistakes. In particular, the dogs could not detect traps, therefore, there many dogs are killed or seriously injured.
Finally, in the late 1960s, the U.S. started carpet bombing to Cu Chi Tunnels in order to destroy apart of tunnels and everything around. But, this military action is useless because the U.S was lose.
Today, Cu Chi tunnels is just about 120km in length that is protected and become tourist attraction place for visitors to Ho Chi Minh city. Visitors can get to experience in the tunnels as the real residents before and enjoying the local foods.
