Last survivor of the USS Utah dies at age 105
Dec 27, 2024, 3:39 PM | Updated: 3:39 pm
Warren Upton sits for a portrait with his daughter Barbara Upton at his home in San Jose, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 26, 2021. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group via AP)
(Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group via AP)
SALT LAKE CITY — The oldest living Pearl Harbor survivor and the last survivor of the USS Utah passed away on Wednesday.
According to the Pacific Historic Parks, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting historical sites in the Pacific, Warren “Red” Upton of San Jose, California, died on Christmas while surrounded by his family.
“Warren was serving as a radioman aboard USS Utah when Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7, 1941,” the nonprofit said in a Facebook post. “After the Utah was hit and began to capsize, Warren and others abandoned ship and swam to Ford Island.”
In a2020 interview, Upton told The Associated Press he was getting ready to shave when he felt the first torpedo hit the Utah. He said no one on board knew what happened until the second torpedo caused the ship to capsize.
The nonprofit said Upton saved another shipmate who couldn’t swim while he was swimming away. Upton told the AP that he swam to Ford Island, where he jumped into a trench to avoid Japanese planes. He stayed for about 30 minutes until a truck came and took him to safety.
“Ultimately, 58 USS Utah crewmembers died that day, many of them unable to escape the ship as it rolled over,” the nonprofit said. Altogether, more than 2,300 U.S. troops died in the attack.
According to the nonprofit, Upton continued to serve as a radioman during WWII. When the war ended, he returned home, married Gene, and had a family. Gene passed away in 2018.
