Madison County Democrat. (London, Ohio) 19??-1958, 1951-05-18
RED TIDE
BREAKS IN
\. Line
BN OIen Clements

TOKYO, MAY 181R- A tide
of communist troops broke
through American lines in two
sectors of the Korean front today
and threatened to engulf one us.
division.
After three days of slowly
gathering momentum, the big new
Red offensive was rolling in full
fury. 1t had gained as much as
20 miles.
One US. division was in great
trouble" AP correspondent Nate
Polowetzky reported from us.
Eighth Army Headquarters.
Chinese pouring through a
break in two south Korean di-
visions were believed to be on
three sides of the U. S. division.
The South Korean break, south
of Inje on the east-central front,
had exposed both flanks of the
American force.
Waves of Chinese infantrymen
overran one u. S. unit on the
central front and penetrated an
other. Attacking Reds scrambled
over their own dead to reach the
US. lines.
Communist infantrymen were
cut down by the thousand.
But the sheer weight of their
numbers forced General u. N.
withdrawals along the entire east
ern sector and some Withdrawals
across the central front. In the
'..~Ft +he Allied line north of
Seoul held firm.
Utterly needless of losses, the
Reds attacked in great offensive
which 1t. Gen. James A. Van
Fleet, U. NJ ground commander
said was doomed to failure.
Van Fleet made his confident
statement after the UN high
command announced the Reds hac
1,141,000 troops in Korea or quick
ly available in Manehuria.
Their heaviest weight was
thrown against the east-centra
sector. Up to midninght Thurs.
day they had lost 5000 men there
AP correspondent William G
Barnard reported.
Their losses after midnigh
were astounding" he said.
They hurled an amazing storm
of men against a heavily defended
position southeast of Chunchon
They ran into Allied minefield
and through geysering explosions
They kept coming over the bod
les of their own dead. Allied ar
tillery rained death in thei
midst.
They kept coming and thel
they hit the barbed wire entangle
ments and fixed American ma
chineguns opened up with deadl.
fire. 1t cut them down by tn
hundreds, stopping the attacl
cold at the very mouth of tn
Allied guns"
Through the night Allied bomb
crs and fighters bombed an
strafed by the light of flares
Massed artillery fired steadily in
to swarming Reds.
In one spot east of Chuncho
shells burst into a mass of 800
Chinese.
This was on the edge of tn
big Red breakthrough.
An estimated two Chinese di
visions poured through the ga
i'm South Korean lines and fame
out south, southwest and south
east of Inje.
They were reported applyin
heavy pressure on America
flanks.
Communists streamed down tn
road toward Hongchon, highwa
hub and American base on tn
central front.
Americans were engaged
heavy fighting around Hangy,
The town is 13 miles south Of tn
38th parallel, 90 air miles sout
of Inje and 10 miles northeast {
Hongchon.
This appeared to be the grea
est depth of Red penetration.
While Americans fought
stem the Red tide, south Korean
were reported reaching their ne
defense lines.
The communists were comm
through on the heels of the sout
Koreans.
"The situation was haZy,' Poll
wetzky reported from Eight
Army headquarters.
Battles flared westward aero
the central front. South of Chul
chon American lines held.
But the Reds drove two hol
i'm U.N. lines in hand to har
fighting Thursday morning on Il
west central front This actiC
was roughly 25 miles northea
of Seoul.
All field dispatches we
heavily censored. The exact loc
ton of any fight was deleted.