Massive Blast That Killed 320 Felt 48 Miles Away

The date was July 17, 1944. The place: the munitions facility at Port Chicago, California, 35 miles north of San Francisco. Black Navy personnel units had been assigned to the dangerous work of loading munitions, with loading happening around the clock.
On the evening of July 17, empty merchant ship SS Quinault Victory was prepared for loading on her maiden voyage. The SS E.A. Bryan, another merchant ship, had just returned from her first voyage and was loading across the platform from Quinault Victory. The holds were packed with high explosive and incendiary bombs, depth charges and ammunition -- 4,606 tons of ammunition in all. There were 16 rail cars on the pier with another 429 tons. Working in the area were 320 cargo handlers, crewmen and sailors.
At 10:18 p.m., an explosion ripped apart the night sky. Witnesses said that a brilliant white flash shot into the air, accompanied by a loud, sharp report. Flashing like fireworks, smaller explosions went off in the cloud as it rose. Within six seconds, a deeper explosion erupted as the contents of the E.A. Bryan detonated in one massive explosion. The seismic shock wave was felt as far away as Boulder City, Nevada.
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