Shigemi Fukahori, a survivor of the atomic bombing in Nagasaki in 1945 who devoted his life to promoting peace and campaigning against nuclear weapons, has died. He was 93 years old.
Fukahori died at a hospital in Nagasaki in southwestern Japan on Jan. 3, according to a Sunday statement from the Catholic Church in Urakami, where he prayed almost daily until last year. The church, located about 500 meters from ground zero near Nagasaki Peace Park, is widely seen as a symbol of hope and peace because its bell tower and some statues survived the nuclear bombing.
Fukahori was 14 years old when the United States dropped a bomb on Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, killing tens of thousands of people, including his family. This came three days after the nuclear attack on Hiroshima that killed 140,000 people. Japan surrendered a few days later, ending World War II and the country's nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.
Fukahori, who worked at a shipyard about three kilometers from where the bomb fell, was unable to talk about what happened for years, both because of the painful memories and how powerless he felt at the time.
About 15 years ago, he became more outspoken after visiting Spain, where he met a man who was also 14 and had experienced the 1937 bombing of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War. Shared experiences helped Fukahori open up.
Fukahori often talked to students
“The day the bomb fell, I heard a voice asking for help. When I walked up and held out my hand, the person's skin melted. I still remember that feeling,” Fukahori told Japanese broadcaster NHK in 2019.
He often turned to students, hoping they would take up what he called the “peace baton,” referring to his support.
When Pope Francis visited Nagasaki in 2019, Fukahori presented him with a wreath of white flowers. The following year, Fukahori represented the bomb victims at a ceremony, taking a “peace oath”, saying, “I am determined to send our message to make Nagasaki the last place where an atomic bomb was ever dropped.”
A wake is scheduled for Sunday and funeral services are scheduled for Monday at a church in Urakami, where the family will be represented by his daughter.