The Wall › Panel 11W › New Jersey › Rafael Colon-Santos
RAFAEL COLON-SANTOS
Sergeant · U.S. Army
September 28, 1948 – April 17, 1970
Service recordRafael Colon-Santos, of Hamilton, New Jersey, served as a Sergeant in the U.S. Army. He died on April 17, 1970, in Binh Dinh Province, South Vietnam, at age 21. His name is inscribed on Panel 11W, Line 16 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 11W · Line 16
Names are inscribed in the order of loss, starting at Panel 1E at the apex and ending at Panel 1W. At the Memorial, find the panel number at the base and count down from the top line.
Remember
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Service
- Branch
- U.S. Army
- Rank
- Sergeant (SGT)
- Service
- Drafted (Selective Service)
- Occupation
- Infantryman (11B)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 173 AIRBORNE BDE
- Born
- September 28, 1948
- Home of record
- Hamilton, New Jersey (Multiple County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- April 17, 1970
- Age
- 21
- Province
- Binh Dinh
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Explosive Device
Context · from the records
What was happening
19 names on the Wall carry the date April 17, 1970; three of them were lost in Bình Định Province. In April 1970, 730 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 173rd Airborne Brigade, his unit in the record, lost 17 of its members that month.
Read the history
On the Wall
Also on Panel 11W, Line 16
- HOWARD RIVERS ANDREWS JRCaptain · April 17, 1970
- ALVIN EUCLID CROSSChief Warrant Officer 2 · April 17, 1970
- DEAN ALLEN HARIGWarrant Officer 1 · April 17, 1970
- WILLIAM KENNETH HUNTERSpecialist Four · April 17, 1970
Source. U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Casualty Analysis System, Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File (as of April 29, 2008), Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Record Group 330, National Archives (NAID 2240992). Panel and line as recorded in that file. This page presents the official record and its historical context; no biography has been written for him yet. See something wrong? Report a correction.