In September 1945, Kyoto University's "Atomic Bomb Disaster Research Investigation Team" was in Hatsukaichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture, treating and examining survivors of the atomic bomb that had been dropped on the adjacent city just a month earlier. On the 17th of that month, the team was in the path of a major mudslide caused by a powerful typhoon that had been raging through western Japan. Eleven team members perished.
On 12 September 2015, a memorial service was held for those 11 victims in Miyahama Onsen (formerly Ono Town), Hatsukaichi, in front of the cenotaph that had been built in their honor.
The KU investigation team, formed at the request of the Japanese military in the immediate aftermath of the bombing, comprised researchers, students, and nurses mainly from the Faculties of Medicine and Science. Having set up their base at an army hospital in Ono Village (now part of Hatsukaichi City) on 3 September, the 50 or so team members were treating A-bomb survivors and investigating the pathology of their conditions when the Makurazaki Typhoon caused a mudslide that would claim a total 156 lives.
That incident is commemorated annually with people coming individually to pay their respects on the closest Saturday to 17 September, the date of the disaster. Every five years, a formal ceremony is held.
This year's ceremony was attended by some 70 persons, including relatives of the deceased.
After observation of a moment of silence, addresses were delivered by President Juichi Yamagiwa, Professor Shinji Uemoto (Dean of the Graduate School of Medicine), Professor Atsushi Moriwaki (Dean of the Graduate School of Science), Dr Toru Kimura, chair of the Hiroshima Branch of Shirankai, and Hatsukaichi Mayor Katsuhiro Shinno. These were followed by remarks by Mr Yoshio Makka, one of the surviving relatives. Then, all present, including President Yamagiwa and Mayor Shinno, placed floral tributes at the foot of the cenotaph.
The ceremony concluded with President Yamagiwa presenting a letter of appreciation to Mayor Shinno and two other local officials -- the president of the municipal assembly, and the director of the Ono branch of the municipal government -- expressing his gratitude for the many years of generous support provided for the event.
The ceremony was followed by a social gathering held at a nearby hotel.
From left: President Yamagiwa, Dean Uemoto, and Dean Moriwaki
From left: Dr Kimura, Mayor Shinno, and Mr Makka
Placing a floral tribute at the cenotaph
A moment of silence
