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'We Survived': A Secret Escape From Vietnam

Kiem Do
The Historic New Orleans Collection
Kiem Do was an officer of the Republic of Vietnam Navy before he settled in New Orleans in 1975, following the fall of Saigon.

Kiem Do served as the Deputy Chief of Staff for the Republic of Vietnam Navy in the early 1970s. Faced with the imminent fall of Saigon in the spring of 1975, Do led a massive – but secret – evacuation effort to bring members of the navy and their families to safety. The Historic New Orleans Collection interviewed Do, now in his 90s and living in New Orleans, for this edition of NOLA Life Stories.

Joe Shriner is an independent radio producer and audio engineer in New Orleans.
Mark Cave is an oral historian and senior curator at the Historic New Orleans Collection.