Between August 5 and 24, the NKPA attacked the Pusan Perimeter along four widely separated but converging axes. In the southwest, one NKPA division and one armored regiment advanced along the Chinju-Masan-Pusan axis, seeking to envelop the left of Walker’s line. Walker reinforced the 25th ID with the newly arrived 5th RCT and the 1st Marine Bde. Designated Task Force Kean, the combined Army-Marine force on August 7 launched the first American counterattack of the war, hitting the NKPA 6th Div. at Chinju. The poorly coordinated counterattack stopped the North Koreans, but otherwise produced limited results. After five days of indecisive fighting, Walker prudently suspended the operation. He faced more serious threats farther north.

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Simultaneously with the southern thrust, the North Koreans drove for the center of Walker’s line, launching five infantry divisions echeloned in depth, supported by elements of the 105th Armd. Div. This double-pincer attack originated around Sangju and sought to envelop Taegu from both the north and south. Walker considered the southern thrust, through an area dubbed the “Naktong Bulge,” the greater threat, as it endangered the vital Taegu-Pusan rail loop.

The North Korean thrusts were poorly coordinated, allowing Walker to shift his reserves between the two. He brought the 1st Marine Bde. and elements of the 27th Inf. Regt. north and attached them to the 24th ID. Counterattacking the NKPA 4th Div. on August 17, the 24th ID cleared the bulge by the following night. On August 24, Walker put the newly arrived 2nd ID into the center of the line and pulled the 24th ID back into reserve.

While the North Koreans were attacking in the center and south, two NKPA divisions north of Taegu forced their way across the Naktong and collapsed the northwest corner of the perimeter. Withdrawing south under intense pressure, the ROKA 1st and 6th divisions fell back into the 1st Cav. Div., forcing Walker to evacuate his EUSAK headquarters from Taegu to Pusan. Walker shifted the 27th Inf. Regt. north again, and with the ROKA 1st Div. they counterattacked. By August 18 the Americans and South Koreans had established defensive positions overlooking a long, flat, narrow valley that became known as the “Bowling Alley.” The following day, Walker committed elements of the 23rd Inf. Regt. to reinforce the 27th. The battle dragged on for six more days and nights, as the NKPA 13th Div. tried unsuccessfully to push the Americans back.

As the series of battles was raging along the Naktong, the NKPA on August 9 attempted to infiltrate and envelop the northern perimeter with three divisions. The North Korean objective was to drive down the east coast, from Yongdok, through P’ohang-dong to Pusan. The northern flank was under the tactical control of the ROKA I Corps, but Walker committed a small task force of U.S. artillery and armor, and the South Koreans received massive FEC air and naval support. Naval gunfire compensated for the ROKA 3rd Div.’s artillery shortfall, forcing the NKPA to operate far inland. Regardless, the NKPA managed to push the South Koreans down the coast to Toksong-ni. The U.S. Navy evacuated the ROKA troops on the night of August 16–17, putting them back ashore the following day to establish defensive positions near P’ohang-dong, some 25 miles farther south. The 3rd Div. remained in the fight, but the Pusan Perimeter had collapsed southward to little more than half its original size.

The North Korean push in early August had amounted to a massive frontal attack, but a piecemeal one. On August 27, the NKPA launched another series of attacks against the same objectives, but this time the attacks were well coordinated. Despite heavy initial losses, they were still able to field some 98,000 troops. By September 3, Walker was beating back simultaneous attacks in five locations. Three days later, the North Koreans cut the key road running west to Taegu, forcing the ROKA 3rd Div. out of P’ohang-dong. In the center, the North Koreans almost pushed the 1st Cav. Div. out of Taegu by September 10 and drove the 2nd ID back into the Naktong Bulge, almost to Yongsan. In the far south, the NKPA broke through the 25th ID and advanced toward Masan.

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