Japan: Today Marks 71 Years Of Nagasaki Atomic Bombing Anniversary

Nagasaki: Bells tolled in Nagasaki, Japan on Tuesday, August 9 to mark the 71st anniversary of the city’s atomic bombing by the United States, bringing an eventual end to World War II.

Thousands of people stood in silent reflection at the city’s Peace Park as the bells tolled at the precise moment (11:02 AM Nagasaki time, 02:02 GMT) an atomic bomb dubbed “Fat Man” detonated over the city just moments after being dropped from an American B-29 bomber.  Over 70,000 people were killed instantly, with thousands more dying months,   even years later from radiation sickness. The attack came three days after the US dropped the first ever atomic bomb — “Little Boy” on Hiroshima, which ultimately killed 1,40,000 people.

The attendees included aging survivors of the August 9, 1945 attack, as well as representatives of over 50 nations, including several nuclear powers.

Last year, the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombing, a record 75 nations were represented at the Nagasaki ceremony.

Nagasaki Mayor Tomihisa Taue urged world leaders to “bring together as much of your collective wisdom as you possibly can” to permanently eliminate nuclear weapons, and  urged them to visit his city to learn first hand the aftermath of a nuclear attack, using President Barack Obama’s historic visit in May to Hiroshima as an example.  Obama was the first U.S. president to visit Hiroshima, which was attacked three days before Nagasaki.  “Knowing the facts becomes the starting point for thinking about a future free of nuclear weapons,” he said.

Taue also called on Japan’s national government to legalize the country’s long-standing principles of neither producing nor possessing nuclear weapons, and banning the entry of such weapons on Japanese soil.

Six days after the Nagasaki attack, Japan’s imperial government surrendered to Allied forces. 

A list of 3,487 “Hibakusha” who died over the past year was enshrined at the ceremony, bringing the total number of deaths during and resulting from the Nagasaki atomic bombing to 172,230. A “Hibashuka” is a survivor of either of the atomic explosions at Hiroshima or Nagasaki in 1945. The average age of survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki stood at 80.86 as of the end of March.