Members of the martyr remains search and recovery team excavate Hill 685 in Thanh Thủy Commune in search of the remains of fallen soldiers. — VNA/VNS Photos Đức Thọ

TUYÊN QUANG — Before dawn, an alarm breaks the silence of the mountains along the border in the northen province of Tuyên Quang.

At five in the morning, officers and soldiers of the martyrs’ remains search and collection team under the Tuyên Quang Provincial Military Command begin another day of searching for soldiers who died more than four decades ago.

Breakfast is over within half an hour. A brief meeting follows, then the teams set off towards the high ground where some of the fiercest battles of the border war were fought.

Their route can stretch for dozens of kilometres along steep, slippery trails and through areas where unexploded bombs and mines may still lie beneath the ground.

On Hill 685 in Nậm Ngặt Village, Thanh Thủy Commune, every minute counts.

The hill was once dubbed the 'lime kiln of the century' by soldiers because of the density of bombs and artillery fire that struck it. Parts of the summit were blasted away, while rocks were scorched and shattered. The ground was repeatedly churned up, burying battlefield traces under layers of earth and stone.

More than 40 years later, the slopes have turned green again.

But beneath rocks, inside tree hollows and behind collapsed cave entrances, the remains of soldiers may still be waiting to be found.

Under the summer sun, temperatures can exceed 40 degrees Celsius. Heat radiates from the rocks, while sweat quickly soaks through the soldiers’ uniforms as they dig.

They work with hoes, shovels, crowbars and portable drills. Even with protective gloves, days of handling heavy tools have left many with hardened, calloused hands.

When a suspicious area is reached, the pace slows.

Earth is brushed away layer by layer. Rocks are moved carefully. Every detail matters. Beneath the soil could be a fragment of bone, a uniform button, a piece of military clothing or a personal belonging.

Lieutenant Colonel Nguyễn Hữu Tiệp, deputy head of the search team, said the terrain presents major challenges.

The soldiers rely mainly on hand tools, using portable drills to break through large rocks. Rain makes the mountain slopes slippery and increases the risk of landslides, while unexploded bombs and mines may remain buried deep underground.

“The longer we wait, the more difficult the search becomes,” Tiệp told Tin Tức (News) online newspaper.

“Even if we find only a small fragment of bone, we will do everything we can to bring our comrades home. It is an order, a responsibility and a way for those of us who are alive to honour those who died.”

Some parts of Hill 685 can only be reached by climbing sheer rock faces using homemade wooden ladders and ropes, or squeezing through narrow cave passages.

Explosive ordnance and personal effects recovered by soldiers during the search for fallen soldiers’ remains on Hill 685.

One suspected site is believed to contain the remains of seven or eight soldiers. Its entrance, however, has been buried under thousands of cubic metres of earth and rock.

The team uses drills, hammers and crowbars to clear the rubble, working slowly to reopen the passage.

After hundreds of cubic metres of earth and stone have been removed, the first clues emerge: rice bowls, canteens and other military belongings.

Small objects scattered among the rocks can be crucial. They provide evidence that the soldiers may still be there.

Hill 685 was the scene of some of the fiercest fighting during the country’s defence of its northern border.

Decades of bombing, weather and changes to the terrain have disturbed or buried many battlefield traces.

There are no complete maps showing where soldiers were buried. Instead, search teams piece together information from veterans and witnesses, alongside military archives and observations in the field.

A collapsed cave, a stretch of an old trench or an unusual change in the soil can become a lead.

Major Hoàng Văn Ngư said identifying possible bone fragments among earth, roots, rocks and decaying wood requires experience.

Veteran searchers can distinguish bone by its shape, colour and structure, but every suspected fragment must be handled carefully.

“We try not to leave a single patch of ground unchecked,” a member of the team said.

“Every time we find remains, we are deeply moved, because these soldiers sacrificed their lives to protect every inch of the nation’s border.”

During the first six months of the year, the Tuyên Quang Provincial Military Command deployed personnel to gather information and conduct searches at high points in Giang Nam, Mã Hoàng Phìn, Hoàng Ly Pả and Nậm Ngặt villages, as well as other key areas.

At the Nhìu Sang Village cultural house in Lao Chải Commune, 20 officers and soldiers from Group 2 are temporarily staying while they search for remains in nearby hills.

The unit divides its personnel between information gathering and field searches.

Captain Triệu Tiến Phú, head of Group 2, said soldiers travel about three kilometres by motorbike before walking another five to six kilometres through the forest.

They normally leave at six in the morning. At some sites, however, it can take until 8am to reach the search area.

The work continues into the late afternoon before the soldiers begin the journey back, racing against darkness.

The terrain is a mixture of rock, earth and sand, with steep slopes and dense vegetation. If it rains, mud, rocks and fallen leaves turn trails dangerously slippery.

Soldiers carry the newly recovered remains of fallen soldiers to the designated collection site.

Soil and sand can slide from above, burying old trenches and adding to the amount of excavation required.

Although military engineers have cleared many areas, the possibility of unexploded bombs and mines remaining underground persists.

During longer missions, soldiers carry food and supplies and stay in the forest.

Meals are cooked over wood fires. Hammocks strung between trees become makeshift beds after long hours of digging.

Since the start of the campaign, Group 2 has recovered the remains of six soldiers from hills 300 and 400.

At other sites, no remains have been found, but the team has uncovered canteens, combs, toothbrushes, toothpaste tubes, bowls and chopsticks.

Each item is recorded and preserved. Even an ordinary object can provide a new lead, helping investigators narrow the search area.

The 500-day-and-night campaign to search for, recover and identify the remains of fallen soldiers has passed more than one third of its planned duration. Much work remains.

Time is erasing traces of the battlefield. Witnesses are growing fewer. The landscape continues to change.

For the soldiers searching the former Vị Xuyên battlefield, every piece of information gathered today could be the clue that finally brings another fallen soldier home.

So they continue to reopen collapsed caves, excavate old trenches and turn over rocks one by one.

It is a journey by soldiers today to find the fallen soldiers of yesterday. They hope that one day, every search will end with another comrade found, and that those who have remained beneath the border mountains for decades can finally make their journey home. — VNS