Marines recall Yeonpyeong shelling with new perspective

YEONPYEONG ISLAND (Yonhap News) ― To this day, Marine captain Kim Jeong-soo still remembers the sound.

“It was as if dinosaurs were stomping on the ground,” Kim said, recalling the fateful day almost a year ago. “The moment was straight out of the film ‘Jurassic Park.’”

But when bombs shook this tiny island in the Yellow Sea, it wasn’t part of any Steven Spielberg movie. Right before their eyes, the soldiers and residents were witnessing the first direct attack on South Korea by the North in almost 60 years.

This Wednesday marks the first anniversary of North Korea’s bombing of Yeonpyeong, the first time South Korean territory has been under attack since the 1950-53 Korean War. Two civilians and two of Kim’s fellow Marines were killed as the North fired about 170 rounds of artillery on an island guarded by more than 1,000 Marines.

Kim was then serving as the commander of the Marines’ 7th Artillery Battery, under the Yeonpyeong Marine Unit. Of all military bases on the island, this battery was hit the hardest. The impact of the bombing left huge craters and soot along the walls of the unit’s artillery bunkers, and some K-9 self-propelled guns were also damaged.

Shells also landed on the battery’s barbershop. But as was the case with bomb craters across the unit, the damaged barbershop has been left intact and preserved. It is now housed inside a new brick structure, with the sign at the top reading, “The Memorial Hall for the Victorious Yeonpyeong Artillery Battle.” The rubble reminds the Marines that the enemy lies merely kilometers away and may yet strike again, but also that they were the victors of the exchange.

Make no mistake. Despite the loss of two of their own and two civilians on the island, the Marines believe they won the battle because they fired dozens of shots back at North Korean artillery bases minutes after being struck. The exact extent of damage in North Korea hasn’t been confirmed, but that hasn’t prevented South Korean Marines from declaring the win.

On a wall at the main entrance to the barracks at the 7th Artillery Battery hangs a plaque commemorating the victory, with names of every officer and soldier serving at the time engraved on it.

Today, 15 of 96 soldiers who served during the Yeonpyeong attack in the 7th Artillery Battery are still with the unit.

Looking back on Nov. 23, 2010, those 15 soldiers, plus officers who had served in the battery before moving on to other units, said the experience angered and frustrated them, but also gave them a fresh dose of perspective.

Kim Sang-hyuk, a gunnery sergeant, was manning the one artillery gun at the battery that couldn’t return fire because of mechanical malfunctions. Kim said the failure to fire back still gnaws at him.

“Those of us who were at the gun were so upset that we couldn’t complete our missions as gunners,” he said. “We were worried that we had given our battery a bad name, and we were determined to be the first to strike back if the North hit us again.”

Lee Wan-seob, a staff sergeant, was a section chief at the time. His gun was able to fire, but he confessed to having no concrete memories of how it all happened.

“I barely had time or presence of mind to think through things,” he said. “The soldiers all looked jittery and jumpy. I did, too, but as a section chief, I felt I had to control my emotions or it would affect the rest of our section.”

These two non-commissioned officers at least escaped injury.

There were eight soldiers who weren’t as fortunate. But five of them still returned to Yeonpyeong after getting treated for their injuries.

Han Gyu-dong, Cho Soo-won and Lee Han, all sergeants, said they have little recollection of the moment that they were speared by artillery shrapnel, remembering only the whoosh of shells flying by and later finding themselves all bloodied.

Lee had mixed feelings about the experience. The 21-year-old said he doesn’t bring up the incident with fellow Marines unless they ask him because “I’d rather not recount those moments.” On the other hand, when he does look back, Lee said he is at more ease with himself.

“After that, I think our unit became tighter as a group,” said Lee, who sustained cuts to his cheeks, groin and left knee. “I almost died and survived. I feel like I can do anything now.”

As young Marines developed cohesion, the military leadership made changes to bolster defense of Yeonpyeong and other border islands.

In June this year, the military set up the division-sized Northwest Islands Defense Command and placed it under the auspices of the Marine Corps. The command has been specifically tasked with defending five Yellow Sea islands near the border, including Yeonpyeong.

Since the command’s formation, the defense ministry has also modified the areas of operational responsibility in the Yellow Sea to ensure greater efficiency. The new command is now overseeing all waters around those five islands.

Initially, in peace time or in case of low intensity provocation by North Korea, the command was in charge of the defense of waters within a 2-kilometer radius of the five islands.

Outside that range, the 2nd Navy Fleet was in charge, with the command providing support.

But critics said the setup created confusion about the command structure in the volatile waters, and deprived the islands defense command of the operational control over the very areas it was designed to protect.

Additional weapons have been deployed on Yeonpyeong to ensure quick-strike capabilities. Military officials said Yeonpyeong units are now equipped with 130-millimeter multiple rocket launchers and AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters. The launchers have a range between 23 kilometers and 36 kilometers and should be able to strike North Korean artillery base in Kaemori, only 13 kilometers away from Yeonpyeong, and its artillery support units.

A Cobra can attack North Korean flying hovercraft and can complement coastal artillery guns, officials added.

Also on Yeonpyeong are artillery hunting radar, or ARTHUR, and self-propelled guns and towed guns with extended ranges.

By late next year, precision-guided missiles could also be deployed. South Korea in September reached a deal to purchase fifth-generation Spike Non Line of Sight (NLOS) missiles from Israel. The Spike can hit a target using global positioning system (GPS) technology within a range of 25 kilometers.

More so than changes to weaponry and areas of operations, the armed provocation changed the men who handle those machines and who engage in such operations.

Lee Geon-ho, now a corporal, had been in the 7th Artillery Battery for about two weeks when the attack happened. He joined the Marines with Moon Gwang-wook, one of the two fallen Marines, and they went through the same boot camp drills and found themselves together at Yeonpyeong Marine Unit, albeit in different companies.

Lee said having combat experience so early in his service, plus losing one of his contemporaries, has given him a kind of “been there, done that” perspective on his military service and on life.

“Whenever I run into rough patches, I think back to that day and tell myself I can handle anything,” the 20-year-old said.

“Whatever happens, I know it’s not going to be as tough as that experience. If I could survive that, then I feel like I can do anything.”

Lee Han, the injured sergeant who returned to Yeonpyeong after getting treated, said he has no regrets about serving on the volatile island.

“People say I was hit because I was a Marine, but I actually think I survived the attack precisely because I am a Marine,” Lee said. “If I have a son later, I will send him to the Marine Corps.”