<Begin Segment 9>

TI: Okay, so now you're on the truck, you just helped this girl into the truck by holding her on her armpits, and then what happens next?

IH: Oh, then they were trying to get on the army hospital, but the houses are all burning, cannot go anyway. They turn around and then go to the ocean side. Then -- [coughs] excuse me.

TI: Do you want a drink of water?

IH: Yeah. Then I figure out no sense, because opposite side from my house, so I jump off with my classmate. And then tried to get out from the city.

TI: Now, when you were on the ocean side, were there many people on the beach or in the water trying to treat their burns or anything like that? Did you see anything like that?

IH: They had some hospital on the other island, so the army boat going to take 'em to the other island. And some people on the bank of the river, they were so hot, so they tried to cool off and go into the river. And that place, no more fire, and it's so hot, they're going to jump into the water and die. Or some cannot go, just lie down on the bank of the river and then die there. And I didn't see it, because I was just trying to get out from the center. So less people, only the people can walk out. And then that's emergency time, with the family, in case you have something, cannot come home, going to the meeting point. Number one here, number two there, number three, and then my last meeting place is my mother's parents'. That's really far away from the city, maybe four hour, just walking down.

TI: So I want to understand this. So before the, during wartime, everyone had kind of a plan in case of bombs or something, we get separated, we meet here, number one, if not here, then number two, number three? So where was the meeting places for you?

IH: More outside the city. My friend's house first. Then tried to, about three or four.

TI: So this was, this was worked out with your parents. Okay, "So Izumi, if something happens, here are the good safe places to go after."

IH: Yes. So I went to the last spot, and then they didn't show up, so next day, I'm coming out, and then look inside the city again.

TI: Okay, so let's talk about how you went from the ocean side to your mother's parents house. Because it's pretty far away, you said four hours? How did you get there?

IH: Just walked. No train, nothing. No transportation.

TI: And it took you four hours?

IH: Four hours, it took. Four to five hours. Of course, not fast, because kind of hurt, so everybody walking slowly. It's kind of far away.

TI: And while you're walking, are there other people around you walking also?

IH: Yeah, all going back to their own house.

TI: And what were people saying or talking about as they were leaving? Did you hear voices?

IH: Then about evening, they started talking. That was some kind of new bomb they dropped on Hiroshima. And then those days, only one B-29 come fly over. Nobody going to the bomb shelter or anything, just another one coming. Nobody expecting the bombing. And what I heard later, B-29 fly over, and then they dropped three parachute, they saw. And then one is the atomic bomb itself, one is a trigger, when exposed, and this one going to be the atomic bomb exploding. And another parachute was a ton of water, they say. Because the chain reaction going through the water is kind of fast and then more explosive. That's the reason maybe Hiroshima damage was so big, because of the seven rivers running inside the city. So that maybe affected the water, gonna affect the atomic bomb.

TI: I didn't know that.

IH: I didn't know, just later I found out.

<End Segment 9> - Copyright © 2011 Densho. All Rights Reserved.