Name Plate of Nagasaki A-Bomb Victims Bears Testament to Brother’s Life
NAGASAKI — Nagasaki on Sunday marked the 81st anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of the city.
On August 9, 1945, the U.S. conducted an atomic bombing on Nagasaki, Japan, resulting in over 1,400 workers and students losing their lives at Mitsubishi Steel Mfg. Co.’s Nagasaki Steel Works. Yoshinobu Matsumoto, now 90, lost his older brother, Komao, who was also mobilized to work at the factory. Matsumoto urged Mitsubishi to install a metal plate bearing the names of the deceased on a cenotaph in memory of the victims.
Upon visiting Shotokuji temple for the first time in a year, he found his brother's name among the names etched on the 1.2-meter tall and 1.4-meter wide plate. Matsumoto, a lawyer now residing in Chiba Prefecture, expressed his happiness at finally having his brother's name acknowledged. The cenotaph, built in 1951 and located 1.2 kilometers from the hypocenter, serves as both a monument and a tomb, holding unclaimed remains of the victims.
Written by urgent.news from The Japan News by The Yomiuri Shimbun's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
