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| OKUTANI Mieko（OKUTANI Mieko） |
| Gender |
Female |
Age at time of bombing |
18 |
| Recorded on |
2004. |
Age at time of recording |
78 |
| Location at time of bombing |
Hiroshima(Exposed upon entering city) |
| Location when exposed to the bombing |
|
| Status at time of bombing |
Medical staff |
| Occupational status at time of bombing |
Tottori Red Cross Hospital, Maiduru Naval Hospital, Maiduru Headquarters, Navy Command |
| Hall site |
Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims |
Dubbed in English/
With English subtitles |
Dubbed in English |
1. Mieko Okutani was a nurse from Tottori Red Cross Hospital. She entered Hiroshima City on August 9th. She was 18.
2. She provided aid in Motomachi, near the hypocenter and as a result, became ill. She speaks of her experience to prevent more hibakushas.
3. coming to Hiroshima after the bombing
4. At the time, I was working for the Red Cross Hospital, which was at the same time the Maizuru Army Hospital, mainly caring for the injured.
5. Rescue is the mission of a Red Cross nurse and so when the atomic bomb was dropped, we were ordered in as the first rescue team. The bomb fell on the 6th, we left on the 8th and arrived on the 9th.
6. [what I saw in Hiroshima]
7. On the way, I had heard that the city had been demolished and I tried to imagine what it must be like. My memory of when I stepped off of the train is of people everywhere, hunched over.
8. Apparently that day had been the day of enlistment and so there were all that many more injured. They weren't unbearable to look at but many had covered themselves with blankets or were crouched over.
9. We were piled onto an army truck that took us to our rescue center. As we got closer, the devastation became clearer. Everything was gone.
10. Streetcars were skeletons. People and horses were burnt to a crisp. The only figures to speak of were of those seeking help.
11. A quick look in the river gave me the impression of floating logs. When I looked closer, I realized they were people. Later I came to the understanding that people had jumped in, wanting water.
12. Amidst that situation, we arrived at where the City Hall had been. We were told that this was the rescue center. It was growing dark but we quickly began first aid. We mostly treated burns.
13. Burns and cuts from glass. People had glass still stuck in their bodies. We then helped those who had been treated, to settle down, because while they were being treated there were no anesthetics.
14. Bodies covered in blood and dirt, screaming during treatment. It rang in my ears for a very long time. So after attending to wounds, we laid people down on matting in a big room in the City Hall.
15. Making my rounds, I would try to feed someone a rice ball, but he would give up and die with a hand half-gripping the rice. Someone else might seem fine, but when I looked again, they would be dead.
16. It was like that over and over. People were brought on stretchers at night but there was no light so we couldn't see what was wrong.
17. We transported patients how far, I don't know, but we went back and forth. We were assigned stations.
18. [treating the victims]
19. Our job was to help the doctors. Medical supplies were very limited, so all we could do was clean up what the doctor had treated and wrap bandages. The people had no more strength to walk.
20. Not right away, but after I got back, I worried about their future. I wondered what kind of life these people were headed for and if they would ever be able to stand on their own.
21. I was in Hiroshima for a total of one week. The next team came to replace us after one week.
22. [unforgettable scene]
23. Bloody bodies barely draped in torn clothing, walking aimlessly. I can still see it.
24. There were small children who probably weren't even in school yet. Some were so bad I couldn't tell their ages. It wasn't the time to be guessing ages.
25. The best I could do was take people who had been treated to a designated place and lay them down, and then check on them again later.
26. [knowing it was an atomic bomb]
27. I didn't know right away that it was an atomic bomb, but somehow I figured it out along the way.
28. The newspaper headlines also said, ""Atomic Bomb Dropped on Hiroshima. Details unknown but there has been a great deal of damage."" I don't remember if I found out then or later that it was demolished.
29. I knew people in the special units and so on that had been killed and rumour had it that the situation was not good. Even newspapers.
30. I once heard a doctor where I was working say, ""Science in Japan will advance, but it is that advancement that will destroy mankind.""
31. I remember those words clearly and because of them, the thought did cross my mind that he could have been talking about the atomic bomb and if so, there's going to be trouble.
32. [symptoms immediately after exposure]
33. After I got home I had a bit of diarrhea. It was only for 2 or 3 days, but I was hospitalized. Other than that, I wasn't aware of anything characteristic. Not much was known about A-bomb disease.
34. [not speaking of the experience]
35. My husband was quite an understanding man. I didn't have to talk about the radiation.
36. At the time, there wasn't the awareness of needing to spread the news about the effects of an atomic bomb.
37. My family also knew that I had been exposed to radiation, but none of us talked about it. It didn't get in the way of marriage and I don't think it affected my daughters.
38. The other day I asked my daughter who is married and living in Miyazaki, because I'm involved in these activities, if her husband had mentioned anything at marriage.
39. Her response was that he hadn't. Rather, he was proud of the way I have led my life. So, I was quite relieved.
40. A lot has happened recently and this was something we never regularly talked about so I thought it might be a good idea. This was just the other day.
41. So you see, I've never really thought of the experience as an obstacle and I've never felt discriminated against for being a hibakusha.
42. So when I get the chance I come to Hiroshima and talk about how it was, without worrying about how anyone is going to think.
43. I think that having to hide the fact that you are a hibakusha, I can't find the right words, but…
44. Even though there are many who would prefer to hide the truth, I think that wanting to speak out about it, speaks for itself. It's my decision and I'll do it my way. Nothing else comes to mind.
45. [present health condition]
46. I used to get dizzy spells. Up until last year, I was in and out of the hospital.
47. October last year was the last time. Since then, I feel okay. It's been a good year so far, but when I do get sick, I wonder if it is A-bomb related.
48. [keeping the hibakusha experience alive]
49. I became a nurse and as a result, I have a relationship with the atomic bomb. Because of that, because of what it involves and most of all because everyone's wish is the same.
50. I have written about the need for each and every person to wish for and become actively involved in the abolition of nuclear testing and measures against war.
51. [never again]
52. This is a must. I can't imagine this happening, but the fact that atomic bombs are being made means we have to stop going nuclear.
53. My biggest concern is that the power of science might be ruining us, like that doctor once said.
54. After Hiroshima and Nagasaki, there were no more battlefields on the mainland, but it might happen again somewhere. We have to be against war. The way things are today, however, we might be powerless.
55. After experience the horror of radiation during and after the war, I've gotten to this age now and I'm worried about just how much the young people of today are able to understand.
56. This, entitled ""A-bomb and Hell,"" was introduced in Jr. High and High School classes as ""War."" I received a number of comments from students who had read it. I have them here.
57. From reading what they have written, I think they understand to a certain degree. One says, ""We don't know war, but when I grow up I'd like to do what I can.""
58. At the end it says, ""Please take good care of yourself. This warmness makes me think that they did feel something.
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*Many more memoirs can be viewed at both the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Peace Memorial Halls.
*These contents are updated periodically.
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