The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Private First Class Mercedes Hernandez (ASN: RA-18224004), United States Army, for gallantry in action while serving with Company D, 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, in action against the enemy near Chonggo-ri, Korea, on the night of 31 December 1950 – a January 1951. The enemy attacked the positions of the First Battalion in tremendous mass, estimated to be at least regimental strength, in an effort to break the defenses of the Imjin River. The main efforts of this attack was directed down a road which led into the middle of the Company A lines, to which Private First Class Hernandez’s heavy machine gun section was attached. The enemy attacks were covered and supported by the most intense small arms, machine gun, mortar, and artillery fire. The attack had hardly begun when one of the friendly gunners was killed by a burst of machine gun fire. Private First Class Hernandez immediately took over the gun and continued to cover the assigned field of fire. Within a few minutes he located the enemy weapon that had killed the gunner. Unable to bring his own gun to bear on the target, he turned it over to another man and subjecting himself to the intensive enemy fire went to the other gun of the section to point out the target to them. Under his direction they were able to kill the crew of the enemy gun. Returning to his own position, he took the gun over again and continued his devastating fire. In quick succession he picked up the flashed of three more enemy machine guns and just as quickly poured such accurate fire on them that the crews were either killed or forced to fire. Then with complete disregard of his personal safety and ignoring the terrific enemy fire, he left the protection of his prepared position to go to the top of the hill, There, completely exposed to the hail of enemy fire, he called fire commands by voice to the 60-mm mortar in position behind the hill and directed their fire on the other enemy weapons. He was so cool under all this fire and so accurate in his commands that four more enemy machine guns were quickly silenced. One enemy gun was in such a position that it could not be reached by mortar fire. Moving down over the face of the hill directly into the teeth of the enemy fire, he moved to a spot from which he could call out directions to a rocket launcher crew. Following his directions they soon picked out the target and with one well placed round blasted the gun and its crew. Returning to his original position, he resumed fire on the enemy. First light in the morning disclosed that his fire alone had killed between 35 – 40 of the enemy whose bodies lay out in front of the friendly positions. Private First Class Hernandez’s courageous actions, devotion to duty, and outstanding initiative aided immeasurably in the stand of his unit against overwhelming odds and reflect great credit upon himself and uphold the highest traditions of the United States Army Infantry.