Casualty Occurrence: This Soldier was killed by a BOOBY-TRAPPED 105MM SHELL AND SECONDARY EXPLOSIONS, HILL 238, 6 KM SOUTH OF DUC PHO 19700415 in Quang Ngai Province.

Bill Stevens, High school, track team, Sandro,, I heard, about your death, over, thirty years ago, and am just now, visiting this page, to remember you. You were, a great, long, distance runner, with a fantastic, GPA.,(unlike mine) who went on, to college, at Georgetown, Univ., in Wash., DC.. I will, always remember, you and the others, who didn't come home. God Bless, Bill Stevens, 8/9/2006.

FINAL MISSION OF 1LT SANDRO BARONE. On April 15, 1970, units of Americal Division were conducting search and clear, reconnaissance in force, and pacification operations in their area of operations in Quang Ngai Province, RVN. On Hill 238, three miles south of Duc Pho, elements of C Company/4-21 and C Company/4-3 were securing a landing zone in order to act as a blocking force to engage North Vietnamese Army troops which were being driven their way by Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) forces. While they were organizing their position in 110-degree heat, a booby-trapped 105mm shell was detonated causing the sympathetic detonation of two 81mm mortar rounds and other miscellaneous munitions. The mortar rounds were stored in a pit and caused further secondary explosions of 81mm mortar rounds and Claymore mines that the men were carrying in their packs. Eight Americans were killed by the blast and another nineteen were wounded, thirteen of which required medical evacuation. The medivacs carried the injured to Duc Pho, then later transferred them to Chu Lai after triage. Seven of the patients removed from the hill later expired, bringing the total killed to fifteen.

The lost Americans included from C/4-21: SSG Allen M. Garrett, PFC Dennis E. Jackowski, SP4 James W. Lindemann, SGT Robert J. Mussin, SP4 Gene S. Swager, PFC Rick A. Wilcox, and SP4 Perry L. Woolsey; from Headquarters Company/4-3: PFC Michael C. Gomes; and from C/4-3: PFC Michael W. Haynes, SGT Ronald E. Hodge, SP4 Charles L. Merrill Jr., PFC Jose L. Rivas, and PFC Clarence W. Templeton; from Headquarters Company/4-3: PFC Randall R. Simmons; and from Brigade Headquarters Company, 11th Brigade: 1LT Sandro Barone. Haynes, Rivas, Templeton, and Simmons were posthumously promoted to Corporal. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and Americal Division Tactical Operations Center (DTOC) logs for April 15-16, 1970; also from information provided by Harold Titus (February 2019)]

POSTED ON 2.21.2021. POSTED BY: JEROME F O'NEILL. SANDY WAS A GEORGETOWN CLASSMATE. I knew him well. Sandy was a great guy. We were in the School of Foreign Service and Army ROTC together. He was a good friend. I was at his funeral in April 1970 in Arlington National Cemetery. I visit his name on the wall anytime that I am in D.C. I am in Burlington, Vermont. You can reach me at the email address I have supplied.

Barone, Sandro Nicholas, 1LT