Japanese Shigemi Fukahori, a survivor of the atomic bomb in the city of Nagasaki in 1945, has died at the age of 93, the Associated Press reported, quoted by BTA, citing a statement from the Catholic church in Urakami (Nagasaki district) today.
The deceased, who was a Japanese Christian, had been praying there.
Fukahori died of old age that day in a hospital in the southwestern Japanese city.
The church, which is located 500 meters from "ground zero" (the site of the nuclear attack) and is close to the Nagasaki Peace Park, is widely known as a symbol of hope and peace. The bell tower and some of the sculptures inside survived the atomic bombing 80 years ago.
Fukahori was only 14 years old when the United States dropped the atomic bomb on Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, killing tens of thousands of people. His family was among the dead.
The strike on Nagasaki came three days after the nuclear bombing of another Japanese city, Hiroshima, which killed 140,000 people. A few days later, Japan surrendered, ending World War II and its nearly half-century of military aggression in Asia.
Fukahori worked at a shipyard about 3 kilometers from the site where the bomb was dropped. For years, he could not talk about the tragedy, not only because of the painful memories, but also because he did not have the strength to do so, the AP notes.
About 15 years ago, Fukahori relaxed after meeting a man in Spain who survived the bombing of the Basque city of Guernica in 1937, during the Spanish Civil War. The Spaniard was also 14 years old at the time of the tragedy. The shared experiences helped Shigemi start talking about the atomic bombing in Nagasaki.
Since then, he has often given speeches to young people, hoping they will take over the "baton of peace" from him.
When Pope Francis visited Nagasaki in 2019, Fukahori was the one who presented him with a wreath of white flowers, the AP reported.
The following year, the survivor represented the victims of the bomb at a memorial ceremony, giving his "prayer for peace", saying: "I am determined to send our message to make Nagasaki the last place where an atomic bomb was ever dropped."