Published on 02:15 PM, August 06, 2015

Hiroshima attack: Images show impact of first atom bomb

Star Online Report

Seventy years after the first atom bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, explore these panorama and 'before and after' images, reported by ABC, to see the devastation wrought by the world's nuclear dawn.

Hiroshima in 1945. Photo taken from ABC/ Shigeo Hayashi; courtesy of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum; created by Ari Beser


"I was supposed to go the middle of Hiroshima city for mandatory labour service on the day of the bombing. But I'd had a stomach bug ... so instead I stayed home with my family."
Junko Morimoto, who was 13 at the time of the bombing
Hiroshima, 1945. Photo taken from ABC/ US Army; courtesy of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum; created by Ari Beser


"I heard a noise outside and thought it was another B29. It was that second a strong light filled the place. A roaring sound followed. I felt the house crushing on top of me. Everything was completely dark. I fell unconscious."
Junko Morimoto
Hiroshima, 1945. Photo taken from ABC/ Harbert F. Austin Jr; courtesy of Brett M Austin and Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum; created by Ari Beser


"I woke up – who knows how many seconds, minutes or hours it had been. What I saw around me was just unimaginable. My second sister had collapsed over me. My brother had glass pieces all over his body. My older sister had a chopstick struck through her lips. Our house was gone. I saw fire everywhere."
Junko Morimoto
Hiroshima, 1945. Photo taken from ABC/ HJ Peterson; courtesy of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum; created by Ari Beser


"We quickly ran towards the water. I saw people with stockings hanging down from their limbs and body. I didn't understand at that time that this was in fact their own skin."
Junko Morimoto
Hiroshima, 1945. Photo taken from ABC/ Shigeo Hayashi; courtesy of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum; created by Ari Beser


"My family and I went back to where our house was and made a barrack from anything that was around. There was this stone fencing that just kept its shape so we built our temporary home along that."
Junko Morimoto
Hiroshima Prefectural Office before the bombing
Hiroshima Prefectural Office after the bombing
"My brother had glass pieces struck all over his body. My sisters and I did our best at that time to take the pieces out for him. But I still remember my brother telling me a little before he passed away... 'You know what Junko, I can still feel these tiny pieces under the skin on my back. They're still there.' He passed away at the age of 73 due to cancer. And this cancer could be due to the radiation of the bomb."
Junko Morimoto
Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall before the bombing (160m from the hypocentre)
The hall, which became known as the A-bomb dome, after the bombing
"It was socially very difficult and uncomfortable for us Hibakusha [Hiroshima survivors] to have a peaceful living. There were rumours going around that Hibakusha, because of the radiation we got exposed to, had 'dangerous, weird genes'."
Junko Morimoto
Hiroshima Castle before the bombing (980m from the hypocenter)
Hiroshima Castle after the bombing
"Because everyone was a Hibakusha in Hiroshima, there wasn't anything 'special' about ourselves. I continued going to high school. Living wasn't easy, we didn't have a proper house for many years, there were flies and mosquitoes everywhere. Dust filled the whole city too because of reconstruction."
Junko Morimoto
Aerial view of Hiroshima taken on July 25, 1945
Aerial view of Hiroshima taken on August 11, 1945
"The story and history shouldn't fade because of time. It's been 70 years since the tragic event ... We need to know, understand, and remember the reason that led to this war. Otherwise the same thing will happen in the future – the world is getting ready for it."
Junko Morimoto
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