Steel mill worker reveals blocking view of U.S. aircraft on day of Nagasaki atomic bombing

[yuiyoshida]

Furnaces at Yawata Steel Works, seen in this photo taken in October 1945, survived an air raid. (Mainichi)

KITAKYUSHU, Fukuoka -- As the 69th anniversary of the Nagasaki atomic bombing approaches, a former mill worker in the present-day city of Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture, spoke about his untold story on how he burned coal tar to block the view of U.S. aircraft as they were about to drop the A-bomb on the city.

The United States initially set the Fukuoka Prefecture city of Kokura, today's Kitakyushu, as the first target for the atomic bombing on Aug. 9, 1945. However, U.S. aircraft flying over Kokura on that day had to change their target to Nagasaki due to low visibility over the skies of Kokura.

While stories related to the incident have been rarely told in consideration of A-bomb victims in Nagasaki, three former employees of Yawata Steel Works -- present-day Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. -- have recently told the Mainichi Shimbun about the project to create a smoke screen over the sky to protect the city from bombing.

Of the three workers, Oita resident Satoru Miyashiro, 85, who worked at a can factory in the steel mill at around the end of the war said he burned coal tar to lay a smoke screen on Aug. 9, 1945.

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/features/news/20140726p2a00m0na014000c.html

[Eleanors38]

1. Yesterday, the last surviving crew member of Enola Gay died.

He was the bombardier on the Hiroshima attack. In the article he said that both war and nuclear weapons never settle anything. He was 94.

[July]

2. Corrections, per the New York Times:

He was the navigator, not the bombardier.

He was 93 years old.

"Mr. Van Kirk joined his fellow crewmen in unwavering defense of the atomic raids."

The article, almost half a page in length (I'm looking at my paper copy), makes no mention of any opposition to war or nuclear weapons but rather cites his explanation of why he felt the bombings in Japan were necessary. Not a view I share, but apparently his take on his experience on the Enola Gay.

The obituary is titled " Theodore Van Kirk, 93, Enola Gay Navigator, Dies," if you want to check it out online.

[Eleanors38]

6. You are right. The article I read did mention his views about

war and the Bomb not settling anything, not withstanding his belief it shortened the War.

[madokie]

3. It scares me just looking at the photo

of course I grew up in the duck and cover era so its understandable that I be frightened by this

[Javaman]

4. ...

[madokie]

7. LOL

I needed that

[Javaman]

9. people need to be reminded just how "fun" nuclear war can be! LOL nt

[Fred Sanders]

5. Looks like the Gaza ghetto, were the Japanese civilians also human shields?

[IronGate]

8. No, the Japanese civilians

were ready to fanatically fight and die for their Emperor, it's estimated that hundreds of thousands of American lives and millions of Japanese lives were saved by using the Bombs.