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| NISHIKAWA Chuichi（NISHIKAWA Chuichi） |
| Gender |
Male |
Age at time of bombing |
25 |
| Recorded on |
2003.10.9 |
Age at time of recording |
84 |
| Location at time of bombing |
Hiroshima(Direct exposure Distance from the bombing hypocenter:1.5km) |
| Location when exposed to the bombing |
Yoshijima, Hiroshima City [Current Naka-ku, Hiroshima City] |
| Status at time of bombing |
Armed Forces member or military personnel |
| Occupational status at time of bombing |
First Ship Artillery Regiment of Ship Artillery Corps (2953rd Akatsuki Unit), Ship Headquarters, Army Department, Imperial Headquarters |
| Hall site |
Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims |
Dubbed in English/
With English subtitles |
Dubbed in English |
Chuichi Nishikawa was exposed to the atomic bomb 1.5 km from the epicenter. He was 25. He witnessed the moment of explosion. He can still see the donut-shaped red-black cloud when he closes his eyes.
【immediately before the bomb】
Military life in, uh, I guess you could call it patrol barracks, at Yoshijima Airport of the Akatsuki Corps. From when I was in active service, I was with the anti-aircraft artillery unit, so well, when we were called to duty I was in the air defense convoy Akatsuki Corps, escorting transport carriers.
At the time, I never expected the war to come to an end, so there I was with the automatic cannon, minding my duties out at the airport.Yoshijima is on the coast you see. There was a lot of sand out there. Well, being the airport and all, it was quite spacious. And that's where we lived.There weren't very many airplanes by then. It was very quiet out there. Kind of lonely. Let's see, there were probably about oh just 4 or 5 planes.
【moment of exposure】
As you know, there was no particular alert on the 6th. It was a bright sunny morning, quite refreshing. At 8:15 a.m. it was still breezy. It felt so good we all took our shirts off and carried on.
It was a metallic roar. Almost painful to the ear. I looked up and it had already been dropped. They had already dropped the atomic bomb.Up and to the right was where the roar was coming from, say towards the north, north-northeast, perhaps. When I looked up, a parachute was on its way down.Having no knowledge of the A-bomb, I thought it was an enemy soldier. You know, operation machine-gun, it's called, where they just shoot at everything as they come down.In a moment the sky flashed. Instantly, reddish beams came pouring down. Seconds later there was a detonating thunder, then a gust of wind that blasted me 4-5 meters away. It was that strong.I had never heard of anything called the atomic bomb, but I certainly felt that this was a new weapon and that it was powerful. And frightening, beyond words.When I looked behind me, I could see the mushroom cloud forming. Billowing one ring after another and in turn spreading out until finally, it was over my head.From then on, a dark night fell upon the beautiful blue sky. It became pitch dark.From within the city, I could hear noises like: ""Boom, boom."" ""Boom, boom."" Small explosions from here and there. And then from the darkness I saw the red of fire. And then I saw more. The city burned for 4, 5 days. And in the river that flows towards the south of the airport, there were bodies floating. Dead bodies of those who dove in to escape. It was a living hell.
【injury due to looking directly at the explosion】
My eyes weren't particularly, well let's just say every place was affected the same way so my eyes didn't get burned or anything. The skin got red around the outsides.The pain that was all over really came later. The stabbing pains. I didn't feel anything then because I was totally absorbed. I didn't even know that I hurt. Only that there was a bang and a blast.
【nose and ears】
I was blasted away, about 4 or 5 meters. I smelled mustard. So, I knew enough to cover my nose because I figured there was poison gas. I did that.There was a ringing in my ears for a long time. I was unable to hear.
【post-bomb treatment and evacuation】
I got treatment at a detachment in Ujina, but my blood pressure was very, very low. I'm getting a lot better now, but I do get dizzy.I think I had diarrhea. I don't remember that clearly. That was going on 60 years ago. I did hurt my back, though. When I got blasted by that wind. My spinal cord. A boat came for me in the evening. The roads were blocked so they took me by boat to Ujina. To the Akatsuki Ujina Detachment.
【rescue efforts from the day after】
The following day, citizens had come running to the airport. One who jumped from a second storey, one who broke a wall to escape. A child. All of these people had come to our barracks.This boy must have been around four, five years old. He was crying and screaming; ""Mama, Mama.""Feeling sorry, I shared my dinner. There were no dishes, so I put rice in a big shell and fed it to him. He was able to eat then, but the next morning when I went to check on him, he was dead.The lady who jumped from a 2nd storey probably jumped down onto something sharp like a knife. The bottom of her foot was half cut.The one who broke a wall to get out of the house was covered in blood from head to toe. Came out of the house head first. I saw all kinds of tragic situations like that.
【victims in the immediate aftermath】
Tattered and raggedy. Clothes were just hanging off of the body which was bleeding from cuts by the bamboo used in the wall.I couldn't tell if this was a man or a woman. Dirt all over the face. It was very difficult to look at this person.We didn't know it was an atomic bomb. We did know it was a new weapon though. Never seen anything like it.
【memories during rescue efforts】
A huge temple pillar, oh it was very large. I saw one standing, protruding from a rooftop. I remember things like that.It wouldn't lie on its side. It stood there, as if it was being held down. I could see that an attack from above was holding it down.I think it was just north of the city hall. I don't remember the name, but I went up a little hill. Remains of the dead were brought there to rest. They kept coming.On the way there, too, it looked like a mountain of rubble, but there was a hill made from piled up ashes and bones.I guess about one week, perhaps 10 days had passed and the suffering around the epicenter had pretty well settled. Mountains of bodies. That's what I remember.
【injuries from exposure】
The fact that my lower back was injured, well the doctor tells me this will never heal. Aside from that was my face. Up until quite recently the color was different.It has healed considerably, but for a long time I had a scar from burning. Oh and as for my eyesight, I have astigmatism. I think there may be a connection there too.My hat blew off in the blast too. But, where I got burned is clear. This way, like a crescent from where the cloth was.That's the way it was. Those rays were something incredible.
【proliferation and a peaceful society】
After 60 years, there is still a nuclear problem. All sorts of issues.Everybody thinks that on the human level, morally I suppose, that the best solution is for everyone to share the same thoughts. The problem is, we're not able to do that.Not knowing what kind of a world our children and grandchildren are being born in to, if there is no basic understanding of what it takes to get along and to help each other…This is the biggest concern for those of us who are ageing. We must create a good society before we go. Otherwise, the children will only suffer.First and foremost is my fear of nuclear weapons. The bottom line is, we must find peace for the entire world.If we don't, people will continue to fight ""I'm doing it 'cause you're doing it"" type of warfare. Isn't there some way to bring these problems to a table and talk them out?
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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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