Improvised Viet Cong snorkel, USS Meeker County: Clearance Diving Team 3, Royal Australian Navy

Improvised snorkel with plastic tube connected to a rubber mouthpiece, made from a tyre. Tied around the tube is a piece of khaki green lanyard, to be worn around the neck. A piece of roughly woven string is also attached to the snorkel. It divides at the other end into two piece of string, to which are attached two small balls for insertion in the nose while in use.

At 2.20 am on 28 June 1970, a sentry on board the tank landing ship USS Meeker County spotted a nylon line secured to the pier, and soon after a swimmer was spotted in the area. Lieutenant Ross Blue, Petty Officer John Kershler, and Able Seaman Gerald Kingston from the 7th rotation of Clearance Diving Team 3 were called in to investigate. Kershler dove into the water to discover explosives wrapped in black plastic, and four fishing floats secured to the nylon line.

The bundle was drawn clear of the ship and Blue towed it away using a small craft so it didn’t touch the bottom of the harbour. It was secured to an empty barge a kilometre from the Meeker County and away from the main shipping channel. The plan was to move it to a nearby mud bank at high tide to inspect it more closely.

A few hours before that could occur, the package exploded, shooting water ten metres into the air. Fortunately, no one was near the package at the time, and there were no injuries or damage from the blast. The rest of the area was searched and no other explosives were found, although Kingston found this improvised snorkel used by the Viet Cong sappers.