Families look back on legacy of Port Chicago, fight for exoneration at Concord commemoration

CONCORD — One hour meant the difference between life and death for Morris Soublet Sr., a 22-year-old sailor assigned during World War II to load ammunition at Port Chicago, a remote naval base constructed between Martinez and Pittsburg in Contra Costa County.

By returning to his Navy barracks an hour early on the night of July 17, 1944, he narrowly avoided joining the list of 320 men — many of whom were Black — who were killed in a series of catastrophic explosions which effectively vaporized the naval base.