Warren “Red” Upton, one of the last survivors of the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, died on Christmas Day. Upton was the sole remaining crewmember of the dreadnaught battleship the USS Utah, one of the ships sunk during the attack. Upton was 105.
“It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Pearl Harbor Survivor Warren ‘Red’ Upton, the last living survivor of the USS Utah. Following a short hospital stay, Warren died on December 25th surrounded by his loving family,” Pacific Historic Parks said in a statement on Facebook announcing his death.
Upton was one of the less than 20 survivors of the attack on Pearl Harbor still alive. With his death, only 15 remain, according to a tally kept by the Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Upton, then a 22-year-old petty officer, was starting his day, shaving below decks. The ship was serving as a training vessel for anti-aircraft gunnery crews and was moored off of Ford Island at Pearl Harbor. The ship was quickly hit by Japanese torpedoes and took on water, listing hard to one side and sinking within minutes.
“It was quite an inferno […] they were strafing us still,” Upton told local news outlet KTVU in 2021. “I went over the side then, and slid down the side of the ship as she rolled over.”
Upton was able to escape the ship, swimming towards Ford Island. While in the water he grabbed another sailor who could not swim and helped him to the shore.
The USS Utah sank with 58 of its crew dying that day. They were among the 2,403 people that died in the attack on Pearl Harbor. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, a military office responsible for recovering and identifying the remains of those killed in conflicts, continues to work to identify the bodies of those who died at Pearl Harbor. It successfully identified all of the bodies from the USS Oklahoma in 2021 after years of investigations.
Upton continued to serve in the Navy throughout the war, working as a radioman. This fall he came the oldest living Pearl Harbor survivor, celebrating his 105th birthday in October. The USS Utah remains partially under the water in Pearl Harbor.
Only two of the remaining survivors made it back to Pearl Harbor this month for the U.S. Navy’s annual memorial.
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