MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Burley Smith remembers Christmas Day 1950 on the top of the Korean struggle.
The retired Miami realtor, now 92, was a 21-year-old sailor aboard the United States Merchant Marine vessel Meredith Victory.
He and some different shipmates had just lately graduated from the Merchant Marine Academy Kings Point, New York.
The ship was in Korean waters to hold navy gear to U.S. troops. He vividly remembers the ship.
“The ship was the Meredith Victory ship, hundreds were built during World War II, the top speed was 17 knots, about 20 miles an hour. It had 15 cargo holds and carried a crew of 47 people and could only carry 12 passengers,” stated Smith.
But the ship’s project modified as 1000’s of determined North Koreans fled from the Chinese military. In the bitter chilly, Smith and his fellow crew members loaded 14,000 refugees on board for a three-day rescue mission.
“We happened to be the ship that took the most because our skipper Captain Leonard LaRue said ‘pack them aboard as tightly as you can’,” stated Smith. “We had 14,000 people stuffed on a small ship. No toilets, no food, no water. They were locked down in the hold afraid mostly of disease.”
The refugees made it safely to South Korea. The Meredith Victory grew to become generally known as the “ship of miracles” finishing the most important humanitarian rescue mission by a single ship in historical past.
“The miracle part of it was the Koreans behaved so well- there was no riot,” stated Smith.
“None of them spoke English and none of us spoke Korean, my respect for them is immense,” he added.
The rescue is an element of South Korean historical past.
There’s a memorial within the metropolis of Geoje, which Smith has visited. He’s additionally been introduced with medals and commendations from the South Korean authorities.
“The Koreans celebrate it every year, it’s a big thing. Here, Korea is the ‘forgotten war’ as it’s known,” he stated.
The rescue mission can be revered by South Koreans as a result of among the many refugees had been the mother and father of Moon Jae-in, the present President of South Korea.
Smith acquired a letter from President Moon thanking him for his actions 70 years in the past, however he has at all times remained humble about his position on the ship of miracles.’
“We never felt special, or like heroes. We all came back and we all went to sea again on other ships. The heroic part of it was being part of a successful operation,” he stated.
An operation that might change the course of historical past.