Wounded Mother and Child at Tuy Hoa During the Central Highlands Evacuation – Original Associated Press Wirephoto – 20 March 1975

Description

A deeply affecting original Associated Press wirephoto showing a wounded Vietnamese mother carrying her infant at Tuy Hoa during the catastrophic retreat from South Vietnam’s Central Highlands in March 1975. The woman, visibly injured and wearing dress characteristic of one of the region’s highland communities, holds her young child closely while awaiting assistance among the thousands of military and civilian refugees attempting to reach the central coast.

The original transmitted caption beneath the image reads:

“TUY HOA, SOUTH VIETNAM, MARCH 20—A wounded mother carries child at Tuy Hoa, among thousands of refugees who were reportedly shelled by North Vietnam forces during flight from central highlands to the coast. A helicopter evacuated her and her child Thursday.”

The photograph dates from one of the most disastrous episodes in the final collapse of South Vietnam. Following the loss of Ban Me Thuot and the decision to withdraw South Vietnamese forces from Pleiku and Kontum, soldiers and civilians were directed towards the coast along Route 7B. The inadequately planned movement became entangled with a vast civilian exodus, and the retreating column was repeatedly obstructed and attacked. Contemporary estimates vary, but only a fraction of those who began the journey reached the coast around Tuy Hoa.

Unlike photographs concerned principally with military manoeuvres or equipment, this image concentrates upon the intimate human consequences of the retreat. The mother’s injury, protective hold upon her infant and evident exhaustion make it a particularly eloquent piece of conflict photojournalism. The close vertical composition also gives the photograph a strong visual immediacy, while the other refugees visible behind her establish the broader humanitarian setting.

The caption records that the mother and child were evacuated by helicopter. Helicopters were used to collect stranded survivors and carry them towards coastal refuges as routes from the highlands became blocked or impassable. Associated Press photographs taken later in March similarly documented refugees being lifted from areas west of Tuy Hoa after their flight from the Central Highlands.

The photograph is an AP Wirephoto or radiocopy, electronically transmitted for rapid distribution to subscribing newspapers. Its full contemporary caption is incorporated into the lower margin, providing the location, date, subject and immediate news context. The reverse bears the Shields Gazette Library archive stamp and a receiving date of 20 March 1975, confirming its provenance as a working newspaper photograph.

This is an original period press photograph and not a later reproduction. It forms an important visual document of the civilian suffering that accompanied the disintegration of South Vietnam only six weeks before the fall of Saigon.

Condition

Good condition for an original working newspaper photograph. There is light overall toning, minor surface marking and handling wear, together with several small creases affecting the margins. A fine diagonal crease extends across the lower caption area, with further slight wear and softening at the corners and edges. Contemporary black editorial crop lines appear above and around the image.

The reverse displays light age toning, faint handling marks and a small area of residue or surface disturbance near the Shields Gazette Library stamp. The original receiving date remains visible. The principal image is clear, strongly contrasted and unaffected by any serious loss.

Please study the photographs carefully as they form part of the description.

Agency: Associated Press
Photographer: Uncredited
Caption number: SAI-9 / 333
Date: 20 March 1975
Location: Tuy Hoa, South Vietnam
Subject: Central Highlands evacuation; wounded mother and child; Vietnamese refugees
Provenance: Photographic archive of the Shields Gazette
Size: 28 × 17.7 cm
Process: Original black-and-white Associated Press wirephoto/radiocopy
Caption: Contemporary transmitted AP caption incorporated beneath the image

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