Aringay, Luzon - 15 March 1945 - There were actually two bridges in close proximity to one another. Although similar, the Bauang bridge was different as it was built with steel trusses.

After four days of road building on the Rosario-Pugo road, Company B of the 108th Combat Engineers and the 1st Battalion of the 130th Infantry were ordered to clear the Aringay bridge across the river of mines and set up a base camp.

Their ultimate mission was to attack north of Caba, take the village of Bauang and open a fourth approach to Baguio along the Naguilian road. The Kennon Road approach to Baguio was taking its toll through some of the most heavily fortified strips on nearperpendicular mountains in all of Northern Luzon.

Photos taken by artillerv liaison pilots showed the bridge was in excellent shape except for one span hit by American bombers, and that could be offset with a Bailey span.

Major General Clarkson believed the Japanese would be forced to fight in the more open areas along the Lingayan Gulf, and then the division's infantry regiments could make a threepronged assault from the west on Baguio.

First, though, the infantry units had to take the vital road junction at Bauang.

On March 18, Company B arrived at the staging area and joined the entire 1st Battalion of the 130th Infantry, a platoon of tanks, two field artillery units and several reconnaissance teams, plus a squadron of P-51 fighters from Clark Field and a Navy destroyer offshore.

The following day, ground units were trucked within 1,500 yards of the Bauang bridge. Great caution was taken not to reveal the presence of too many troops as Intelligence revealed that the Japanese occupying the north end of the bridge were under orders to set off previously planted explosives and destroy the bridge to thwart any attempted crossing.

Early morning 19 March, the 2nd Platoon of Company B of the 108th combat engineers was deployed at the southern approach to the bridge to provide covering small arms protection for a squad of five engineers who would have to cross the bridge over the river and clear it of all mines or other explosives in full view of any observant enemy.

In an eerie silence at 0430 a mine clearing team including 2nd Lt. Edward Hughes, Staff Sergeant Charles Howard and Sergeant AI Loro and Privates Charles Carss and Peter Szot cautiously moved onto the bridge approach listening for any sign of the enemy while probing for charges that had been set and for mines. The first span was clear. Next was a short section of paved causeway that was also clear. Then came the second span. The action that followed is described by Al Loro:

"The Japs were sleeping in the toll house and had a machine gun set up in the middle of the road facing our way. There was a 250-pound bomb at each side of the bridge, one at each end.

"They had a wire leading to each bomb with a stick of explosives they could set off with a detonator. If we removed the fuses and left they could put in another fuse, so we had to get rid of the bombs.

"My orders were to watch the toll house door - if the Japs came out, flip a grenade, or at the word `go' rundown the left side of the bridge as close as possible to the railing and find the colonel's CP and tell him the bridge was clear and to `send the tanks.'

"When Lt. Hughes yelled the word `go,' he and one of the other men flipped one of the bombs over the rail and into the river. Two more men did the same with the other bomb and we all started running back toward our people. Mission accomplished!

"But just after I heard the word `go,' I also heard bullets cracking overhead. Apparently, the Japs were alerted by the shouted word `go' and the splash of the bombs. Anyway they opened up on us with machine guns and rifles.

"I heard someone fall, stopped, turned around and heard the lieutenant say, `get to the CP and I'll take care of (S/Sgt. Howard)!' So I kept running until I got to the CP in the weeds along the approach to the bridge."

Japanese machine gun fire raked the bridge. S/Sgt Howard was killed and Szot and Loro were wounded.

When the first enemy shots shattered the early morning silence, Pfc Walter Niewiadomski hadn't had time to set up his 50 cal. machine gun to provide covering fire, so with Izzy Krzyewski feeding the ammunition belt, moved out of the tall grass into full view of the Japs and started firing at the enemy, taking care not to hit his buddies running toward him. His action was extraordinary considering the weight and kick of a 50 cal. weapon. Niewiadomski kept firing until he was out of ammo; by that time his hands had burned on the red hot barrel of the gun. But his heroic efforts had forced the Japs at the Bauang end of the bridge to take cover.

The Second Platoon of Company B quickly pushed across the bridge and linked up with 130th Infantry teams that had waded across the shallow river bed. By full daylight Bauan had been cleared of the enemy who had retreated to the hills east of town where they fought desperately out of a myriad of camouflaged caves.

Credit must also be given to a task force of Filipino guerrillas who had put strong pressure from the north on the Japanese in Bauang, no doubt compelling the enemy to abandon the village in favor of more defensible ground.

Staff Sergeant Howard was posthumously awarded the Silver Star. Lt. Hughes, Sgt. Loro, and Privates Szot and Carss were awarded Bronze Stars.