The Genius Design of Vietnam's War Tunnels - Atrium (1080p, h264) (1) - video Dailymotion

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Check out  to see how any news story is being framed around the world and across the political spectrum. Use my link to get 40% off unlimited access.  Hi, again. It's us. We're back...  The Vietnam War began in 1965 and lasted for eight years. In this video, we explore the brilliant design of the Viet Cong tunnels, structures so effective that bombs and planes couldn’t take them out.  From now on, we’re making videos based on real events. But to keep things entertaining and still accurate, we didn’t follow one specific person on this occasion (wasn't possible).   We instead crafted a story combining the experience of many American soldiers -- to show the full brutality of these tunnels.  Be the first to follow us on our socials:    We would like to express our gratitude to our incredible team who spent 3 months working upon this video:  Jamie (Researcher) Mirko (Animator) Gabriel (Animator) Vitor (Animator) Nacho (Scriptwriter) Thales (Editor) Luciano (Sound Designer) Raul (Voice Over)  We've only made 5 videos on Atrium... so you're here early. Time to subscribe?

Transcript

00:00Vietnam, January 1967.

00:03The U.S. and its allies have dropped more bombs on this region

00:06than they did on Germany and Japan combined during World War II.

00:10But the Viet Cong are safe.

00:13Hidden beneath the ground is a tunnel network that spans over 100 kilometers.

00:17At the entrance is Tommy Rivera.

00:20His mission is to avoid the deadly traps and enemy soldiers,

00:24locate the control room,

00:26and gather intel to stop the Viet Cong's next major attack.

00:30If he fails, hundreds of American soldiers will die.

00:35Tommy climbs into the tunnel,

00:37covers the trapdoor with leaves,

00:39and closes himself inside.

00:41With a casualty rate of over 30%,

00:43most tunnel rats don't survive their second mission.

00:47Tommy is equipped with the standard issue M1911.

00:51But in these tunnels, it's more of a liability than a weapon.

00:55A single shot could alert the enemy.

00:57Instead, he trusts his father's old World War II knife.

01:00Quiet, reliable, and deadly in close combat.

01:05Tommy doesn't know it yet,

01:07although he is getting very close to the first chamber.

01:10Based on Tommy's previous missions, he is expecting a similar layout.

01:15Connecting to the entrance, there are three levels of tunnels.

01:18Tommy is in the first level,

01:20the entrance where the Viet Cong can quickly hide away in case they are being attacked.

01:25The deeper he goes, the closer he gets to the main living and operations hub.

01:30This includes hospitals, sleeping chambers, and his target, the command center.

01:35At the very bottom is the Viet Cong's safest area built for emergency situations.

01:39Bomb shelters, evacuation tunnels, interrogation rooms, and water wells.

01:46Tommy creeps forward, taking short, shallow breaths to keep as silent as possible.

01:51His nose picks up a faint smell of rusty metal.

01:54The first room is near.

01:56Suddenly, he spots something ahead.

01:58A thin bamboo trigger.

02:00Above in the ceiling is a small camouflaged panel.

02:03Something is moving behind it.

02:05His heart races.

02:07Vietnam pit vipers.

02:09Each tunnel system can hold more than 50 unique traps.

02:13Some explode.

02:14Some impale.

02:15Some release toxic gas.

02:17This one is designed to cause organ failure and internal bleeding from the venom.

02:22If Tommy touches the bamboo, it will send a signal by pulling out the toggle,

02:27causing the wooden panel above his head to swing open and the snakes will be released.

02:32Most soldiers turn back when they see what lies ahead.

02:36But Tommy can't.

02:37Thousands of lives depend on him finding the Viet Cong attack plans.

02:41He grips the dirt and starts to move.

02:44One elbow forward.

02:45Then the next.

02:46He slides above the trigger.

02:48Three.

02:49Two.

02:51One.

02:52And he's clear.

02:54But these traps only get more deadly the deeper he goes.

02:58This is just the beginning.

03:00The more Tommy crawls, the stronger the smell becomes.

03:04The narrow, dirt tunnel curves slightly to the left, then opens.

03:08He's reached the first chamber.

03:10Just four feet wide and five feet tall.

03:13This cramped design is not by accident.

03:15Viet Cong soldiers averaged just five feet three inches tall,

03:19while American soldiers stood around five foot nine.

03:22That height difference made it nearly impossible for most Americans to fit inside.

03:27But standing at five foot one, Tommy is perfect.

03:31Low wooden crates stacked against the wall holding ammunition, medical gear, and rice.

03:37Storage was frequently placed near the entrances, allowing the Viet Cong to restock or retreat faster during battle.

03:44He listens for a moment to hear if anyone might be nearby.

03:49Silence.

03:51Tommy pushes forward.

03:53The soil down here contains high levels of clay and iron.

03:56When it dries, it develops concrete-like properties, stopping the tunnel from collapsing.

04:02However, while it's raining, there's still a risk.

04:05After several more minutes of crawling, he reaches the entrance.

04:09This chamber is larger.

04:11The far end is a shallow pit.

04:13It's a huang cam stove.

04:15This is where they cook.

04:17Unlike the Americans who had supply chains stretching from aircraft carriers to jungle outposts,

04:23the Viet Cong had to scavenge, barter, or steal their food.

04:28To cook and breathe, they built ventilation shafts from the tunnel ceilings to the jungle floor, disguising them as termite mounds.

04:35But cooking releases smoke.

04:37If the Americans saw it rising from the ground, their location would be compromised.

04:42Stay hidden.

04:43They only cooked meals during the morning, or when it's raining, so the natural fog would hide it.

04:49Tommy squats down.

04:50A few pieces of rice still cling to a crusted pot.

04:53The embers are still warm.

04:55Someone was just here.

04:57His pulse quickens.

04:59Back home, on the news, Tommy constantly heard about America's success, high body counts, and tactical victories.

05:06But when he arrived in Vietnam, the reality felt completely different.

05:10Everything seems stuck with no real progress.

05:13That's because he had only been told one side of the story.

05:17The kind of bias you won't fall for if you read ground news.

05:21They pull data from over 50,000 sources worldwide, letting you see how different outlets frame the same story,

05:27so you can compare perspectives, form your own opinion.

05:30In Taiwan, news broke that the country is updating its air raid protocols, drawing lessons from Ukraine and Israel

05:36to protect civilians in the event of a Chinese invasion.

05:39Over 20 outlets have covered this story, with coverage split evenly across the political spectrum.

05:44But side by side, the contrast is clear.

05:46The left-leaning headline focuses simply on what Taiwan can learn from Israel,

05:50while the right-leaning one digs into how the new protocols will be implemented with its citizens.

05:55If you want to take back control and see what everyone else can't, Ground News is giving you the tools.

06:00Right now, they have a huge 40% off the Unlimited Access Vantage plan.

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06:10The enemy is nearby.

06:13There is no time to waste.

06:15Tommy hopes that this next room will be the command center, so he can get back to base and sit by the warm fire.

06:22He keeps crawling.

06:24Then, the ground begins to slope downward.

06:27He pauses.

06:29He knows exactly what that means.

06:31He's entering level two.

06:33The deepest levels are where the real secrets are hidden.

06:36Surgery bays, weapons workshops, supply caches, and his target, the command center.

06:43The air becomes thicker, but sterile, in a way that's unnatural for a tunnel.

06:49Then he hears it.

06:51Movement, soft and muffled.

06:53Tommy freezes.

06:54The sound echoes faintly down a tunnel to his right, shuffling.

06:58A whisper of voices too quiet to make out.

07:01They don't know he's here.

07:03Tommy clutches his knife.

07:05He waits and listens intensely, but the sound starts to fade.

07:10False alarm.

07:12As he approaches the next room, he sees a glow of light.

07:15A bed is pressed against the wall.

07:18Next to it, a stack of blood-stained bandages and scissors.

07:21Glass jars lined along a dugout shelf.

07:24In the corner is a bicycle-powered generator.

07:28This is a quiet way to generate electricity to light this hospital room during surgery.

07:33And charge their radio equipment.

07:35Only found in the more developed systems.

07:38A faint tapping sound echoes through the chamber.

07:42Tommy goes still.

07:44He knows that sound.

07:45They're digging.

07:47At the start of the war, the Viet Cong would dig during the day, making it easier for Americans to locate them.

07:53However, now they only do it while raining, or at night when the jungle sounds overpower their own.

07:59Others will be nearby, hauling dirt in baskets up to the surface.

08:04Every handful is carried far from the tunnels.

08:07Scattered across fields, buried in bomb craters, or dumps into rivers.

08:12The surface will be crawling with Viet Cong.

08:15Tommy hopes the rain stops soon.

08:17Otherwise, his escape just got a lot harder.

08:20Still, not all news is bad.

08:23Medical rooms like this one are almost always placed on the second level.

08:27The same level as the command center.

08:29He's close.

08:31Very close.

08:33The tunnel tightens again.

08:35Tommy claws forward, the walls pressing in, his nails scratching in the dirt, until the path opens.

08:42He stops.

08:43This isn't a storage room.

08:45It's something else.

08:47He tries to see what's inside, but it's too dark.

08:51He knows using his flashlight could expose him.

08:54But staying blind could kill him.

08:57He has no choice.

08:59He flicks it on.

09:01What he sees makes his blood run cold.

09:04It's the trap room.

09:07Most designs weren't meant to kill.

09:09They were made for one purpose only.

09:11To make soldiers like Tommy hesitate.

09:14To make them afraid of the floor, the walls, everything.

09:19Eleven percent of combat deaths are caused by the tens of thousands of booby traps deployed by the Viet Cong soldiers.

09:26In the corner, a pile of bamboo.

09:29Each stake sharpened to a deadly point.

09:31Tommy remembers the last time he saw one above ground.

09:34A fellow soldier stepped on a false floor.

09:37The scream was brief.

09:40The pit was full of spikes.

09:43Sometimes the tips are even smeared with feces.

09:46Not to kill instantly, but to infect.

09:49To rot from within.

09:51He turns.

09:53In another area, a stack of tin cans.

09:56But it's not harmless junk.

09:58Inside are grenades, rigged with trip wires.

10:01Pull the wire.

10:03The pin yanks free.

10:04Boom.

10:06Through decades of fighting off foreign powers, the Vietnamese have learned to use the land to kill any invader.

10:13With a reminder of death, Tommy cuts his light and presses forward into the dark.

10:19He hears a faint sound and freezes.

10:22It's coming from ahead where the tunnel forks.

10:25On his left is a subtle echo of voices.

10:28Viet Cong.

10:29At least two, maybe more.

10:31To his right, silence.

10:34But Tommy knows what silence can mean down here.

10:37A dead end.

10:38Or worse, a trap.

10:41His heart thuds.

10:43The left tunnel could put him face to face with the enemy.

10:46The right could be a trap.

10:48Ending his life and the mission.

10:53He waits.

10:54Motionless.

10:55Counting his breaths.

10:57The voices grow clearer.

10:59Calm.

11:00Casual.

11:01Too calm.

11:02That's what scares him.

11:04He shifts his body toward the right tunnel.

11:07Elbows dragging through the dirt.

11:08Hips twisting.

11:09Each breath he takes could be his last.

11:13No wire.

11:14No pressure plate.

11:16Not yet.

11:17Five feet in.

11:19Still nothing.

11:21Then the tunnel opens slightly.

11:23Just enough for him to kneel.

11:25He is safe.

11:26For now.

11:29It's the second time luck is on Tommy's side.

11:32Deep down, he knows it won't last forever.

11:35And that's when he sees it.

11:37Ahead, lit by only the faintest glow from the lantern, is a large room.

11:42Reinforced with timber.

11:43Large maps pinned to the wall.

11:45Chalk markings.

11:46Folded documents.

11:47This isn't another survival chamber.

11:49This is his target.

11:51The command center.

11:53Tommy scans the area.

11:55There's no one inside.

11:57He moves in silent and low.

11:59A crude table at the center holds an unfolded map.

12:03A red line stretches west towards Saigon.

12:06Circles.

12:07Notes.

12:08Arrows.

12:09Targets.

12:10Highly classified materials.

12:12Somehow, the Viet Cong have secured info about an upcoming offensive.

12:17This was more than just the attack plans he came for.

12:20When Tommy left the camp, they were preparing for this very operation.

12:24Including some of his closest friends.

12:27They spoke with quiet hope.

12:29Final push that could end the war in weeks.

12:32But now he realizes none of them knew the truth.

12:35It wasn't a breakthrough at all.

12:37It was an ambush.

12:39If command sees this, they can call off the advance and change course.

12:44This isn't just another mission.

12:46It's personal.

12:48Failing to get back to the base doesn't just mean helping to defend their base.

12:52It means saving his entire platoon from a certain death.

12:56Tommy hears noises again.

12:59Closer now.

13:00The longer he spends in here, the more likely he is to be caught.

13:05He needs to find the military base attack document.

13:08He looks over to see some rolled up papers.

13:11Without enough time to look inside, he straps them under his belt.

13:15Now, he has another problem to worry about.

13:18How does he get out of here?

13:21As Tommy turns to crawl back the way he came, he hears shuffling.

13:25Close.

13:26Tommy grabs his knife, back pressed against the wall.

13:29He won't use the gun, as it will alert the entire tunnel system.

13:33Making his escape so much harder.

13:36The shuffling grows louder.

13:38As the Viet Cong soldier's head enters the room, Tommy strikes.

13:42The man collapses.

13:44Tommy doesn't move.

13:46He listens in case anyone has been alerted.

13:49It's a young Viet Cong soldier.

13:51He flips the body over, quickly patting down his vest.

13:55A knife, loose ammo, some rice wrapped in a banana leaf.

14:00A picture of the soldier and his family.

14:02He can't be much older than 16.

14:05Although, that was a couple of years ago now.

14:08So much has changed since then.

14:10Many of the Viet Cong soldiers started young, raised in the dark, trained underground,

14:17pardoned by a war that offers no childhood.

14:20At this point, nearly 400,000 dead.

14:23Many of them are civilians.

14:25Nobody down here really wants to fight.

14:28They just don't have a choice.

14:30Tommy finds something else.

14:32A folded piece of paper, wrapped in plastic to keep it dry.

14:36A hand-drawn map showing a rough outline of the tunnel system.

14:40He identifies his location.

14:42Then, another symbol near the way out, closer to the surface.

14:46With limited Vietnamese, he makes out the word prisoner.

14:49If someone's still alive down here, he can't leave them to die.

14:54Out here, the Americans have a code.

14:57No man gets left behind.

14:59Still, it could easily be a trap.

15:02The Viet Cong often turn this against them, turning prisoners into bait.

15:06Tommy tucks the map into his chest pocket, grabs the Viet Cong's body,

15:10and hides it in the corner of the room.

15:12The mission just got much more complicated.

15:15In less than ten minutes, someone will find the body,

15:18and when they do, Tommy will still be in the tunnels.

15:21If he's going to free this prisoner, Tommy's going to need to fight.

15:26Guided by the map, he takes a hard turn down the new passage.

15:29The air grows colder.

15:31The floor angles sharply downward.

15:33His knees scrape and boots slip.

15:36The tunnel continues to twist deeper into the earth than anything he's ever encountered.

15:41Whoever this prisoner is, they must be important.

15:44No one gets buried this deep without a reason.

15:47As Tommy rounds the last bend, he hears something.

15:50Not voices, not footsteps, but breathing.

15:55That's when he feels his elbow hit a string.

15:58This pulls a cord directly attached to a pin.

16:02He closes his eyes.

16:04This could be the end.

16:06A piece of string with metal scraps is attached, which is propelled toward a metal bell.

16:10Making a loud clang.

16:12It's a noise trap.

16:14His heart pounds.

16:15They know.

16:17Tommy exits the tunnel into the room.

16:19A figure hangs from a bamboo pole lashed into the wall.

16:22An American.

16:23The soldier's uniform is shredded.

16:25Blood on his face.

16:27He lifts his head weakly when he sees Tommy, but doesn't react.

16:30He's too dehydrated and malnourished.

16:33But alive.

16:34Tommy moves in and quickly pulls the gag loose.

16:37Don't speak.

16:39He whispers.

16:40You're gonna be okay, but we need to leave now.

16:42He draws his knife and slices the rope and lowers him down.

16:46The soldier winces, but doesn't cry out.

16:48He's light.

16:50Tommy stops.

16:51Tommy checks the map again.

16:53There's an exit nearby.

16:54Up above.

16:55Viet Cong soldiers will know they will be looking for the fastest way out and will be planning

17:00to intercept them.

17:02They know too much to be allowed to escape alive.

17:05Tommy tells the soldier to stay close.

17:08He puts the map away, tightens his grip on his knife, and starts to climb toward the surface.

17:14The rescued soldier stumbles behind him, barely able to keep pace.

17:18Tommy keeps an ear on the tunnel behind them.

17:20No sound, yet.

17:23But it's coming.

17:24Every corner they turn, every shaft they crawl through, Tommy expects movement.

17:29A voice.

17:30A shot.

17:31He turns around and helps pull the soldier up a steep incline.

17:34Light leaks faintly from above.

17:36An exit?

17:38Behind them is a voice, shouting.

17:40They've been spotted.

17:41Tommy doesn't wait.

17:42He pulls the soldier harder and pushes forward up the slope toward a narrow beam of light.

17:47Then, gunfire.

17:49Bullets ricochet against the walls.

17:51Dirt sprays behind his head.

17:53Another shot.

17:54He reaches the top.

17:56A bamboo hatch.

17:58He reaches out to open it.

17:59Locked.

18:00He slams his shoulder into it.

18:02Once.

18:03Twice.

18:04It cracks.

18:05Sunlight floods in.

18:07They're not safe yet.

18:08He grabs the soldier under the arm.

18:10They start running.

18:12No clear direction.

18:13No cover.

18:14Just raw instinct and the will to survive.

18:18Behind them, Viet Cong soldiers spill out from the bamboo hatch.

18:21Weapons raised.

18:23Bullets crackle through the trees.

18:25Tommy doesn't look back.

18:27Branches slice their faces.

18:29Every step is a gamble.

18:31But every step is further from danger.

18:34He glances up.

18:35Smoke trails in the far distance.

18:37A campfire.

18:39A signal.

18:40Hope.

18:41It might just be okay.

18:47The Vietnam War stands as one of the most brutal and arguably most pointless conflicts

18:52in modern history.

18:54Lasting over 19 years.

18:56The suffering it unleashed was huge.

18:59Killing an estimated 5 million human lives from America, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

19:05Within war stories we find heroes, like Tommy Rivera.

19:10But a deeper question must be asked.

19:12What exactly is the hero fighting for?

19:15Throughout history, information has convinced us that heroes fight for their country and their people.

19:22But too often, they're fighting for something else entirely.

19:25A political machine.

19:27Where corporations profit by selling weapons to governments under the disguise of patriotism.

19:33By 1968, 54% of Americans believed the Vietnam War was a mistake.

19:38Yet, dragged on for another 7 years.

19:41It's not just history.

19:44It's a pattern.

19:45The next time you see a war taking place, take a moment to think.

19:50Is this war everything it's claimed to be?

The Genius Design of Vietnam's War Tunnels - Atrium (1080p, h264) (1)

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