1 00:00:01,000 --> 00:00:07,872 The only place we were able to escape it was the river that runs behind our school. 2 00:00:26,520 --> 00:00:29,432 Near the station, about two miles from the flash, 3 00:00:29,560 --> 00:00:32,870 Teruko Fujii thought her tram had short-circuited on the overhead cables, 4 00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:36,390 and that the whole thing was her fault. 5 00:00:40,120 --> 00:00:42,680 I thought that I'd caused some kind of disaster. 6 00:00:43,080 --> 00:00:46,595 I thought I'd broken the tram and done something terrible! 7 00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:56,117 And then I thought, is it a bomb? 8 00:00:56,840 --> 00:01:00,992 That was when I realised it wasn't me who'd caused all this trouble. 9 00:01:05,040 --> 00:01:08,635 First I thought only the station area was affected. 10 00:01:08,760 --> 00:01:10,876 Then I saw people walking towards me with injuries, 11 00:01:11,000 --> 00:01:13,673 and skin hanging from them. 12 00:01:18,760 --> 00:01:22,673 Everybody thought, perhaps if I go over there, I could be saved. 13 00:01:23,760 --> 00:01:26,991 People to the west thought the east might be better. 14 00:01:27,360 --> 00:01:31,751 People were going in every direction, in total silence. 15 00:01:38,960 --> 00:01:42,748 Amid all the destruction, there was at least one miracle. 16 00:01:43,960 --> 00:01:46,474 Eight-year-old Takashi Tanemori was carried 17 00:01:46,600 --> 00:01:50,832 through the burning city by the soldier who rescued him. 18 00:01:50,960 --> 00:01:54,669 At last, the soldier reached the river, 19 00:01:54,800 --> 00:01:57,678 and from the crowds, the little boy heard a familiar voice. 20 00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:03,480 Somehow my father spotted me! 21 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:09,836 I guess he called my name, and maybe I responded, 22 00:02:10,280 --> 00:02:13,033 and I said, that's my daddy! 23 00:02:13,280 --> 00:02:20,277 And then he stood straight to the soldiers, 24 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:26,718 and then he bowed many, many times to the soldiers, said, thank you!You are saviour! 25 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:43,712 Later on, after we were flying back, conversation started about, 26 00:02:43,840 --> 00:02:48,038 you know, the war being over, as a result of this bombing. 27 00:02:48,440 --> 00:02:50,476 Despite the number of people we killed, 28 00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:55,071 we saved multiple numbers over that from being in a war, 29 00:02:55,560 --> 00:02:58,552 and being killed, on America's side, and on the Japanese side. 30 00:02:59,760 --> 00:03:03,594 That time, there was such a hatred for the Japanese, 31 00:03:03,880 --> 00:03:08,112 that the more we killed, the better off we thought we were, 32 00:03:08,480 --> 00:03:12,109 because that means there's going to be less 33 00:03:12,240 --> 00:03:14,071 that we're going to have to contend with during the invasion. 34 00:03:19,840 --> 00:03:24,516 After a six-hour return flight, the Enola Gay reached Tinian Island. 35 00:03:25,640 --> 00:03:30,873 The following... Three, four, 500 people there. 36 00:03:31,480 --> 00:03:36,873 And when we got out of the airplane, of course we were all getting out,we're tired 37 00:03:37,080 --> 00:03:41,437 and I get out, I remember getting out, carrying my oxygen mask,I'm right behind Paul, 38 00:03:41,840 --> 00:03:45,753 and then some joker calls us to attention. 39 00:03:45,920 --> 00:03:49,708 I got out of the airplane,like I was told, he pins this thing on my shirt, 40 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:53,879 guys are taking pictures of us,I saluted, and after that was over with. 41 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:56,275 I'm back to my duty. 42 00:03:56,440 --> 00:03:59,796 We've got to go to de-briefing, by the intelligence people. 43 00:03:59,920 --> 00:04:03,435 They had certain things to ask,did you see this, and did you see that, and so forth. 44 00:04:03,560 --> 00:04:06,632 Confirming that we had bombed the right target. 45 00:04:06,840 --> 00:04:08,876 I said, sure. 46 00:04:19,360 --> 00:04:24,388 Dr Hida escaped from the rubble of the farmhouse four miles outside Hiroshima. 47 00:04:24,920 --> 00:04:27,229 After checking on the child he had been treating, 48 00:04:27,480 --> 00:04:29,789 he headed back towards the city. 49 00:04:34,480 --> 00:04:39,793 It's about six kilometres to Hiroshima from there. 50 00:04:40,440 --> 00:04:43,989 When I was halfway there, suddenly a strange creature appeared out of nowhere. 51 00:04:55,280 --> 00:04:59,637 As it was summer, if it were human, it would have been wearing white. 52 00:05:00,200 --> 00:05:03,954 What I saw was all black, from top to bottom. Pitch black. 53 00:05:04,080 --> 00:05:06,230 I though it was strange. 54 00:05:10,640 --> 00:05:16,954 At the top there was something round,like a head. It had shoulders,something like a body followed. 55 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:23,116 But it was like it had no face. It was black. 56 00:05:24,400 --> 00:05:27,949 The area around the eyes had swollen up, it had no nose, 57 00:05:28,840 --> 00:05:33,311 the lower half of the face was just mouth! It was frightening! 58 00:05:34,840 --> 00:05:38,276 As a doctor,the first thing you do is take a pulse. 59 00:05:38,400 --> 00:05:40,868 But when I took his hand, there was no skin. 60 00:05:41,000 --> 00:05:43,309 There was nowhere I could hold. 61 00:05:44,000 --> 00:05:49,472 So I stood up, saying, please,pull yourself together,and walked around him. 62 00:05:52,000 --> 00:05:56,437 This person gave a small shudder, and then he stopped moving. He had died. 63 00:05:59,480 --> 00:06:03,155 He had fled three kilometres, and then he died there. 64 00:06:03,480 --> 00:06:07,473 That man was the first fatality caused by the bomb, that I saw. 65 00:06:12,600 --> 00:06:17,913 Army recruit, Shigeru Terasawa,had been stationed seven milesfrom the centre of the blast. 66 00:06:20,800 --> 00:06:23,997 His unit was sent to help survivors, 67 00:06:24,120 --> 00:06:26,714 but they soon faced a terrible conflict, 68 00:06:26,840 --> 00:06:30,196 between their compassion and their training. 69 00:06:33,240 --> 00:06:37,119 Even now there are things that I will never forget. 70 00:06:42,040 --> 00:06:45,112 One is the sound of people begging me for water. 71 00:06:56,200 --> 00:07:00,432 In those days,we had been told not to give water to the badly burned. 72 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:07,155 To tell you the truth,we all had these big, military water flasks on our hips. 73 00:07:09,480 --> 00:07:13,234 People were begging for water, but we didn't give them any. 74 00:07:14,280 --> 00:07:17,955 We had been told that if we did, they would die straight away. 75 00:07:20,240 --> 00:07:23,915 And so I didn't give them any. A lot of people died. 76 00:07:25,280 --> 00:07:29,319 Now, looking back, I wish I had given them water. 77 00:07:37,000 --> 00:07:39,878 Burned, and bleeding, in the intense heat, 78 00:07:40,000 --> 00:07:43,072 people were desperate to find any water they could. 79 00:07:44,840 --> 00:07:48,389 They fled to the rivers, to pools, and reservoirs. 80 00:07:48,560 --> 00:07:50,994 Among them, nurse Kinuko. 81 00:07:54,480 --> 00:07:58,268 I knew there was a pool of water, in the back yard of the hospital. 82 00:08:02,960 --> 00:08:08,114 Lots of people had already got into the pool. More people had jumped on top of them. 83 00:08:14,520 --> 00:08:17,080 The people underneath drowned. 84 00:08:19,920 --> 00:08:25,392 This is one scene I can never forget. I still dream about it. 85 00:08:43,000 --> 00:08:48,552 Then came a strange deliverance. 86 00:08:48,680 --> 00:08:53,151 Dark raindrops began to fall from the clouds above the burning city. 87 00:08:58,200 --> 00:09:02,273 We opened our mouths, and drank it. Our throats were parched, 88 00:09:02,880 --> 00:09:06,236 but it was difficult to capture the rain into our mouths. 89 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:16,029 The rain had been made black by ash and smoke 90 00:09:16,160 --> 00:09:19,277 which had been sucked into the rising mushroom cloud. 91 00:09:19,600 --> 00:09:22,751 When these ashes mixed with cool, humid air in the upper atmosphere, 92 00:09:22,880 --> 00:09:26,236 they formed thick, black raindrops, 93 00:09:26,360 --> 00:09:29,477 and fell back down on to the city. 94 00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:34,671 The drops of rain were big enough to hurt, 95 00:09:34,800 --> 00:09:37,234 when they hit your skin. 96 00:09:38,000 --> 00:09:42,710 It descended in a torrent. Black fluid flowed where the rain fell. 97 00:09:43,400 --> 00:09:45,755 It was raining black fluid. 98 00:09:50,000 --> 00:09:54,118 What the people who drank the rain didn't realise, 99 00:09:54,240 --> 00:09:57,038 was that it was highly radioactive. 100 00:09:59,720 --> 00:10:03,156 In time, it would poison many thousands. 101 00:10:23,240 --> 00:10:25,196 On the day the bomb was dropped, 102 00:10:25,320 --> 00:10:29,108 President Truman was still travelling home from Europe. 103 00:10:31,680 --> 00:10:35,116 On our way back, on the Augusta, returning to Washington, 104 00:10:35,240 --> 00:10:38,277 we were on the edge of our chairs, 105 00:10:38,400 --> 00:10:42,188 because we expected any day: any time, any day, 106 00:10:42,320 --> 00:10:44,311 to have a flash from the War Department that the first bomb had been dropped. 107 00:10:44,600 --> 00:10:49,628 And on August 6th,as we were one day out from Norfolk,that flash came. 108 00:10:53,480 --> 00:10:55,471 George Elsie decoded the telegram 109 00:10:55,600 --> 00:10:59,070 that brought the news to President Truman on the Augusta. 110 00:10:59,640 --> 00:11:02,279 When something like that came, we would walk in to him immediately, 111 00:11:02,400 --> 00:11:04,197 we would interrupt whatever he was doing. 112 00:11:04,400 --> 00:11:07,472 He happened to be having lunch with the crew, at that point. 113 00:11:10,120 --> 00:11:13,112 I took it to Truman, who showed it to Secretary Burns, 114 00:11:13,240 --> 00:11:16,198 and to Admiral Leyhey, and Truman announced to the ship's crew 115 00:11:16,320 --> 00:11:18,675 this great accomplishment. 116 00:11:21,200 --> 00:11:26,320 We have dropped a single bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, 117 00:11:27,040 --> 00:11:31,318 with the power of 20,000 tons of TNT. 118 00:11:32,080 --> 00:11:35,277 The city has been completely destroyed! 119 00:11:36,840 --> 00:11:42,437 There was cheering, cheering by the crew,and by the officers,when he read it in the officers' mess. 120 00:11:46,560 --> 00:11:50,473 The Augusta was one of the ships that was destined for the Pacific, 121 00:11:50,600 --> 00:11:54,718 and would have been involved in the invasion. The crew knew that. 122 00:11:55,360 --> 00:12:00,718 Just about everybody who was in Europe knew that they would be headed for the Pacific, 123 00:12:00,840 --> 00:12:02,751 and an invasion of Japan. 124 00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:05,878 So they were just as overjoyed as the President was, 125 00:12:06,000 --> 00:12:08,594 that this damned thing is over! 126 00:12:08,760 --> 00:12:12,639 We hope this will be a warning to the Japanese military! 127 00:12:14,160 --> 00:12:16,958 Come on, boys, we're going home! 128 00:12:18,280 --> 00:12:20,157 He was eager to get home, 129 00:12:20,280 --> 00:12:24,956 because he was sure that the Japanese surrender would come very soon. 130 00:12:27,280 --> 00:12:28,918 In case there was any doubt, 131 00:12:29,040 --> 00:12:32,589 Truman spelt it out to the Japanese High Command. 132 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:37,429 It was to spare the Japanese people form otter destruction 133 00:12:37,920 --> 00:12:42,152 that the ultimatum of July 26th was issued at Potsdam. 134 00:12:43,160 --> 00:12:46,436 Their leaders promptly rejected that ultimatum. 135 00:12:47,240 --> 00:12:52,519 If they do not now accept our terms, they may expect a rain of war,from the air, 136 00:12:52,720 --> 00:12:56,156 the like of which has never been seen on this earth. 137 00:13:08,080 --> 00:13:11,277 Late that afternoon, the mayor of Hiroshima, 138 00:13:11,400 --> 00:13:13,994 issued his own proclamation. 139 00:13:16,360 --> 00:13:21,036 The present catastrophe is the result of a horrible and inhuman air raid. 140 00:13:24,480 --> 00:13:28,871 The enemy's intention is clearly to undermine the fighting spirit 141 00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:31,150 of the Japanese people. 142 00:13:32,840 --> 00:13:36,389 Citizens of Hiroshima, the damage is great, 143 00:13:37,320 --> 00:13:40,357 but that is only to be expected during a war. 144 00:13:41,280 --> 00:13:45,592 Keep up your spirits. Do not lose heart. 145 00:14:34,440 --> 00:14:38,831 The morning after the bomb, a full-scale rescue effort began. 146 00:14:40,640 --> 00:14:45,077 Squads of soldiers from surrounding garrisons were drafted in to help. 147 00:14:47,840 --> 00:14:50,195 They collected the dead bodies and disposed of them 148 00:14:50,320 --> 00:14:52,629 before disease could spread. 149 00:14:57,360 --> 00:15:00,557 The wounded were quickly taken away for treatment. 150 00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:07,996 Makeshift hospitals were set up,although there were only a handful of medical staff. 151 00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:15,629 Dr Hida found himself treating 3,000 survivors 152 00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:17,990 in a village outside Hiroshima. 153 00:15:22,600 --> 00:15:25,797 At first we had no medicine, no equipment. 154 00:15:26,640 --> 00:15:29,632 There was nothing we doctors could do. 155 00:15:29,920 --> 00:15:34,152 However, we gathered up some things, and started treating the burns. 156 00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:40,833 Nurse Kinuko had an extraordinary escape. 157 00:15:43,960 --> 00:15:48,351 I don't know whether I was unconscious for hours or for days. 158 00:15:51,680 --> 00:15:55,753 When I did come round, I thought, so, I'm still alive. 159 00:15:56,000 --> 00:15:59,037 God must have given me strength. 160 00:16:02,280 --> 00:16:06,956 She woke to find that she had been thrown into a mass grave. 161 00:16:09,080 --> 00:16:13,073 After I crawled out of the hole, I managed to cross the road, 162 00:16:13,200 --> 00:16:15,668 to get to the entrance of the hospital. 163 00:16:18,520 --> 00:16:22,752 It took me a terribly long time, as I could not stand, 164 00:16:22,880 --> 00:16:26,156 nor lift my arms, or move them to the side. 165 00:16:29,640 --> 00:16:31,471 I crawled like an insect, 166 00:16:31,640 --> 00:16:34,473 and finally reached the hospital entrance. 167 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:43,789 Dr Hinoki from the pharmacy spotted me, and exclaimed, 168 00:16:43,960 --> 00:16:45,154 you're still alive! 169 00:16:50,080 --> 00:16:53,516 He picked me up, and carried me to the surgery area. 170 00:17:00,160 --> 00:17:04,278 The corridor was full of people lying side by side. 171 00:17:10,200 --> 00:17:17,117 This was where they operated on me, 172 00:17:17,480 --> 00:17:19,948 and removed all of the large pieces of glass that were stuck in me. 173 00:17:29,280 --> 00:17:33,637 All over the city, relatives searched the ruins for signs of survivors. 174 00:17:38,320 --> 00:17:42,757 Before midday, my friend's father came to get us. 175 00:17:48,360 --> 00:17:51,397 But my friend, who had escaped from the bank with me, 176 00:17:51,520 --> 00:17:53,954 turned out to have a broken spine. 177 00:17:57,840 --> 00:18:02,960 She died a week later. She was a year younger than me. 178 00:18:04,160 --> 00:18:08,472 I am nearly 80 years old now, but she was only 18 at the time. 179 00:18:08,600 --> 00:18:12,309 whenever I think of her, she is still 18 years old. 180 00:18:13,480 --> 00:18:16,358 She was a very pretty, gently person. 181 00:18:27,320 --> 00:18:30,630 - Untranslated subtitle - 182 00:18:30,760 --> 00:18:34,753 - Untranslated subtitle - 183 00:18:35,480 --> 00:18:37,675 - Untranslated subtitle - 184 00:18:43,800 --> 00:18:49,113 - Untranslated subtitle - 185 00:18:50,560 --> 00:18:54,792 - Untranslated subtitle - 186 00:18:57,400 --> 00:19:04,556 - Untranslated subtitle - 187 00:19:05,480 --> 00:19:08,153 - Untranslated subtitle - 188 00:19:13,600 --> 00:19:16,194 - Untranslated subtitle - 189 00:19:16,720 --> 00:19:19,837 - Untranslated subtitle - 190 00:19:20,000 --> 00:19:22,434 - Untranslated subtitle - 191 00:19:28,360 --> 00:19:30,954 - Untranslated subtitle - 192 00:19:35,080 --> 00:19:38,675 - Untranslated subtitle - 193 00:19:38,800 --> 00:19:42,713 - Untranslated subtitle - 194 00:19:53,880 --> 00:19:56,269 Three days after the Hiroshima bomb, 195 00:19:56,400 --> 00:19:59,870 despite all the destruction, Japan still hadn't surrendered. 196 00:20:00,480 --> 00:20:04,871 A second bomb was made ready, and Truman issued another warning. 197 00:20:06,400 --> 00:20:10,871 The world will note that the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, a military base. 198 00:20:11,160 --> 00:20:15,915 If Japan does not surrender, 199 00:20:16,040 --> 00:20:18,156 bombs will have to be dropped on more industries. 200 00:20:26,440 --> 00:20:30,672 I urge Japanese civilians to leave industrial cities immediately, 201 00:20:30,880 --> 00:20:33,553 and save themselves from destruction. 202 00:20:35,560 --> 00:20:39,348 I realise the tragic significance of the atomic bomb. 203 00:20:40,200 --> 00:20:43,397 Having found the atomic bomb, we have used it. 204 00:20:44,120 --> 00:20:49,240 We have used it against those who attacked us, without warning, at Pearl Harbour. 205 00:20:49,480 --> 00:20:51,789 Against those who have starved, and beaten, 206 00:20:51,920 --> 00:20:55,310 and executed American prisoners of war. 207 00:20:55,440 --> 00:20:59,672 Against those who have abandoned all pretence of obeying international laws of warfare. 208 00:21:02,080 --> 00:21:05,152 We have used it in order to shorten the agony of war, 209 00:21:05,280 --> 00:21:10,274 in order to save the lives of thousands and thousands of young Americans. 210 00:21:25,160 --> 00:21:29,915 A second bomb was intended for the city of Kokura, 211 00:21:30,200 --> 00:21:33,112 but it was too cloudy, so the plane moved on to Nagasaki. 212 00:21:34,400 --> 00:21:38,393 Desperately short of fuel, 213 00:21:38,520 --> 00:21:40,715 the crew released the bomb, despite more clouds. 214 00:21:42,080 --> 00:21:45,436 The bomb missed the aiming point, and fell into a valley. 215 00:21:46,040 --> 00:21:48,600 This time there was no firestorm, 216 00:21:48,720 --> 00:21:52,315 but even so, more than 50,000 people were killed. 217 00:21:57,680 --> 00:22:02,037 The Supreme War Direction Council in Tokyo was meeting on the same day. 218 00:22:02,240 --> 00:22:05,118 By now, the Russians had declared war on Japan. 219 00:22:05,760 --> 00:22:08,194 Then came the news from Nagasaki. 220 00:23:36,640 --> 00:23:40,394 Then, Prime Minister Suzuki did something unheard of. 221 00:23:40,760 --> 00:23:44,389 He asked the Emperor to break the deadlock, and make a decision. 222 00:23:46,880 --> 00:23:50,475 Emperor Hirohito told them he wanted to end the suffering, 223 00:23:50,600 --> 00:23:53,114 and bear the unbearable. 224 00:23:55,920 --> 00:23:57,273 Four days later, 225 00:23:57,400 --> 00:23:59,152 radical soldiers attempted a coup, 226 00:23:59,280 --> 00:24:01,919 to prevent the surrender. They failed. 227 00:24:03,760 --> 00:24:07,912 At dawn on the day that Emperor Hirohito was to broadcast an announcement 228 00:24:08,040 --> 00:24:11,316 to the Japanese people that the war was over, 229 00:24:11,480 --> 00:24:15,029 General Anami prepared to end his life 230 00:24:15,160 --> 00:24:17,674 in the time-honoured tradition of seppuku. 231 00:24:27,400 --> 00:24:29,834 His suicide note read: 232 00:24:29,960 --> 00:24:34,033 "My death is my apology for my great crime. " 233 00:24:47,640 --> 00:24:53,510 The war was over. At last the troops were going home. 234 00:24:55,280 --> 00:24:57,794 There was jubilation around the world. 235 00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:16,668 But then, came something that would forever change perception of the bomb. 236 00:25:16,800 --> 00:25:22,079 It started in the hospitals. 237 00:25:27,840 --> 00:25:30,957 A mysterious illness began to spread. 238 00:25:31,080 --> 00:25:35,949 I noticed it from about the fourth day. Of course, it had been there all along, 239 00:25:36,280 --> 00:25:40,159 but I thought people were dying of severe burns. 240 00:25:43,960 --> 00:25:48,112 The woman who lost her children in the fires, Shigei Hiratsuka, and her husband, 241 00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:51,676 were amongst those affected. 242 00:25:53,880 --> 00:25:57,873 They lined my bed up next to my husband's, and took his test first. 243 00:25:59,320 --> 00:26:03,233 When they had taken enough blood for the sample,they withdrew the needle. 244 00:26:08,080 --> 00:26:12,995 But the blood wouldn't stop. Nothing worked, whatever they did. 245 00:26:14,720 --> 00:26:18,759 Even when they applied pressure, he carried on bleeding. 246 00:26:20,040 --> 00:26:23,032 During this time, purple spots began breaking out 247 00:26:23,160 --> 00:26:25,310 all over my husband's body. 248 00:26:25,760 --> 00:26:28,991 He then vomited a large amount of brown liquid. 249 00:26:30,560 --> 00:26:34,633 Afterwards he went limp, and died an hour later. 250 00:26:36,360 --> 00:26:38,794 He had managed to survive that far, 251 00:26:38,920 --> 00:26:41,388 but then even he was taken away from me. 252 00:27:02,520 --> 00:27:06,229 Her husband was one of thousands 253 00:27:06,360 --> 00:27:08,316 who would die from this new and untreatable condition. 254 00:27:12,560 --> 00:27:17,475 They were rotting. It was necrosis. There were no white blood cells, 255 00:27:17,600 --> 00:27:20,876 so the blood had no power to fight against infection, 256 00:27:21,000 --> 00:27:22,877 and so, suddenly, the rotting set in. 257 00:27:23,000 --> 00:27:25,639 In the end, the hair would start to fall out. 258 00:27:26,040 --> 00:27:29,396 When you put your hand on the patient's head, 259 00:27:29,520 --> 00:27:31,795 tufts of hair would come away in your hand. 260 00:27:35,360 --> 00:27:38,318 It emerged that those who were worst affected 261 00:27:38,440 --> 00:27:40,874 had been close to the hyper centre, 262 00:27:41,000 --> 00:27:45,516 or had swallowed radioactive material, like the people who drank the black rain. 263 00:27:53,720 --> 00:27:57,872 In hindsight, we realised that it was radiation, 264 00:27:58,000 --> 00:28:00,036 but at that time, we didn't know what it was. 265 00:28:01,160 --> 00:28:04,755 Radiation sickness has become the single most disturbing legacy of the bomb. 266 00:28:07,720 --> 00:28:11,998 American scientist had always known the bomb would produce radiation, 267 00:28:12,240 --> 00:28:16,438 but the scale of the after effects came as a shocking surprise. 268 00:28:45,120 --> 00:28:49,511 Today Hiroshima is a thriving city of over a million people. 269 00:28:53,720 --> 00:28:57,599 Japan, too, has been transformed into a prosperous country 270 00:28:57,720 --> 00:29:00,757 that has renounced the use of war entirely. 271 00:29:10,560 --> 00:29:13,950 Although no one has used a nuclear weapon since, 272 00:29:14,080 --> 00:29:18,073 arguments continue as to the morality of dropping the bomb. 273 00:29:18,240 --> 00:29:22,472 Was it really necessary? Could it have been avoided? 274 00:29:26,800 --> 00:29:28,836 The nation had no rice to eat, 275 00:29:29,000 --> 00:29:31,912 people had not eaten white rice for a whole year. 276 00:29:32,120 --> 00:29:34,918 How could such a country go to battle? 277 00:29:35,040 --> 00:29:39,670 The Americans knew that, very well, and still dropped the atomic bomb. Why? 278 00:29:39,800 --> 00:29:45,272 It was an experiment!They knew that the bomb had enormous explosive power. 279 00:29:46,280 --> 00:29:50,273 What they did not know was how much damage the radiation would cause. 280 00:29:50,400 --> 00:29:53,870 Some scientists thought they knew, but they had not tested it, 281 00:29:54,000 --> 00:29:58,516 so they made an experiment, to find out, by testing it on human beings. 282 00:29:59,440 --> 00:30:04,230 The final decision that resulted in the two bombs, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, 283 00:30:04,520 --> 00:30:08,069 was not made in Potsdam, 284 00:30:08,200 --> 00:30:13,228 it wasn't made by Truman, it was made by the Japanese militarists 285 00:30:13,400 --> 00:30:17,632 when they rejected any opportunity to surrenderjust their armed forces, 286 00:30:17,960 --> 00:30:21,270 and save further massive loss of life. 287 00:30:27,160 --> 00:30:30,118 Today there are just a few places that 288 00:30:30,240 --> 00:30:32,117 bear the scars of August 6th 1945. 289 00:30:35,440 --> 00:30:37,795 There are burn marks on trees, 290 00:30:40,720 --> 00:30:44,474 the shadow of a vaporised man, left on stone. 291 00:30:47,840 --> 00:30:50,673 First hand memories are fading too. 292 00:30:52,800 --> 00:30:56,475 Akiko Takakura, the bank clerk, 293 00:30:56,600 --> 00:31:01,230 who had been just 260 metres from the hyper centre, 294 00:31:01,360 --> 00:31:04,113 is one of the last witnesses to the full horror of the bomb. 295 00:31:06,760 --> 00:31:10,116 There is a department store called Sogo, in Hiroshima, 296 00:31:10,320 --> 00:31:13,198 where I stop sometimes for tea. 297 00:31:15,480 --> 00:31:18,711 From the tearoom, 298 00:31:18,840 --> 00:31:21,832 I can see the road from the bank to the drill ground, where we escaped. 299 00:31:27,360 --> 00:31:30,796 I see old people walking happily down the street. 300 00:31:31,000 --> 00:31:34,834 Young people holding hands, and enjoying each other's conversation. 301 00:31:35,200 --> 00:31:39,398 Children holding their parents' hands, and looking happy. 302 00:31:45,600 --> 00:31:48,797 And I think about those awful scenes that I experienced, many years ago, 303 00:31:48,920 --> 00:31:52,959 now, and all the people that lost their lives. 304 00:31:54,800 --> 00:31:59,555 I think to myself, what was all that? Did it really happen? 305 00:32:07,800 --> 00:32:11,554 Every year, on 6th August, there are ceremonies 306 00:32:11,680 --> 00:32:14,353 to recall what took place on that day, 307 00:32:14,920 --> 00:32:17,832 to make sure that these events are never forgotten, 308 00:32:17,960 --> 00:32:19,916 or repeated. 309 00:32:22,520 --> 00:32:28,117 At sunset, tens of thousands of candles are released on the river in Hiroshima, 310 00:32:28,960 --> 00:32:34,432 each candle representing the soul of one of the dead. 311 00:32:35,432 --> 00:32:45,432 Downloaded From www.AllSubs.org