On a sunny Sunday in 1943, Huntington Beach suffered its worst air disaster in a military accident that was largely forgotten until recently.

On Monday, 73 years to the day after a P-38 on a training exercise crashed into the beach, killing four children and injuring more than 40, the city will commemorate the crash with a dedication of a plaque across the street from the beach.

Although Jerry Person, city historian, recalled the crash in a story in the Huntington Beach Independent in 2004, it wasn’t until 2015 that fellow historian Chris Epting, at the urging of the families of victims, appeared at a City Council meeting to talk about it. After hearing Epting’s story, several council members took up the cause.

“It wasn’t just a story of tragedy, it was a story of triumph,” Epting said. “The first responders were lifeguards and these Huntington Beach teens were picking up people and rescuing people.”

Councilman Dave Sullivan said after hearing the tale it was easy to get behind.

“It’s a part of our history, a tragic reminder of World War II,” he said.

It was also Sullivan who help spur the effort last year to etch into the city’s memorial recognizing war casualties the name of A.A. Woodward, a Huntington Beach resident who died in Pearl Harbor but was mistakenly left off the list.

The 1943 plane crash was a reminder that even seemingly innocuous war exercises could have deadly consequences, even for the innocent.

On that day, four children from the Barrego and Silva families, who had driven from their home in Garden Grove, were enjoying a picnic on the beach, according to several accounts.

Beachgoers watched the P-38s practice shooting at a drone when one of the planes lurched as smoke began coming out. The pilot, G.R. Fair, bailed out safely, but unexpectedly the now-unguided plane turned toward shore near Newland Street.

The plane crashed near the water’s edge where children were playing, scattering debris and burning gas. Two children each from the Silva and Borrego families died that day and more than 40 were treated for burns and injuries.

One of those expected to attend Monday’s 5:30 p.m. ceremony is Vera Silva. At the time of crash, the 10-year-old Silva was at home caring for her blind grandmother. In the aftermath of the crash, Silva became a caretaker for her brothers, who were severely burned.

According to Epting, the boys never fully recovered and died young. Silva’s parents also died young, possibly due in part to their grief, Epting said, and Silva became the family matriarch.

“Today, Vera is 83 years old. When she talks about the accident she still gets tears in her eyes,” Epting wrote in his blog “Surf City Chronicles.”

The city plaque will be installed at the clubhouse of Huntington by the Sea, a mobile home park on Newland at Pacific Coast Highway, across from the crash site and where Silva’s daughter, Maria Young, now lives.

According to Epting, Young moved to the park “not knowing what had taken place literally just outside her front door.”

The day of the crash also saw heroism amid the horror. Lifeguards, led by Bud Higgins, who would become chief of the lifeguard and fire department, arrived quickly to save lives and render aid.

“There was a lot of heroism on the part of the first responders,” Sullivan said. “I just think it’s important to recognize historical events in our city.”