Sunao Tsuboi (Hiroshima, 1925–2021) On the morning of August 6, 1945, Sunao Tsuboi was on his way to the university in Hiroshima. At 8:15, when the bomb hit, he was about 1.2 kilometers (0.8 miles) from the blast center. I was blown at least ten meters (33 feet) by the blast. My head, both hands, back, waist, both legs—almost all parts of my body—were burned. After a week, I lost consciousness. It took me over a month to regain consciousness. For three months after the day I finally came to, the doctors told me on a daily basis that I would surely die. Since 1945, Mr. Tsuboi had been hospitalized many times: for chronic aplastic anemia, for cardiac angina, and for cancer in his large intestines. All of these diseases were caused by the aftereffects of radiation. Despite his poor health, Mr. Tsuboi gave testimony about the horror of nuclear weapons and appealed for their abolition. Survivors suffering from burns and other injuries. Hiroshima, around 11 a.m. August 6, 1945. Photograph by Yoshito Matsushige, Collection of the Chugoku Shimbun. Top: Mr. Tsuboi was a teacher at a junior high school. Photograph courtesy of Sunao Tsuboi. Left: Mr. Tsuboi at the Anti Nuclear Weapon Exhibition held at the United Nations during the 2010 NPT Review Conference. Photograph courtesy of Nihon Hidankyo.
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