WATAOKA Kimino

Prior to the nuclear bombing, Kimino’s family ran a tea shop, which they lived above. At the time of the attack, Kimino was at home with her mother, father and five-year-old sister Hirono. All burned to death.

Another sister, 12-year-old Kayoko, was killed near the current Peace Memorial Park – then a bustling shopping district – while mobilised for building demolition work to create firebreaks. Her remains were never found.

Only their 16-year-old sister, Chizuko, survived.

Chizuko found the burnt bodies of her family in the ruins of their home. Her mother had died in a crouching position, holding Kimino tightly to her chest. Only small pieces of fabric remained unburned where their bodies had pressed together; Chizuko could recognise the flower pattern of Kimino’s dress. She held the pieces of fabric and cried.

For the rest of her life, Chizuko cherished family photos taken mere days before the nuclear bombing – likely just one day before, a Sunday.

The family had decided to evacuate from their home in the city centre to protect themselves from air raids. Chizuko’s father had suggested taking family photos before they left, in the hope that they would one day return safely. In one photo, Hirono and Kimino sit together on a chair. Another shows all six family members together.

Throughout her life after the bombing, Chizuko felt uncomfortable taking family photos. Once, upon entering a photo studio to take pictures with her family and grandchildren, she was overcome with emotion, saying, “It’s terrifying, terrifying …”

As an adult, Chizuko and her husband reopened the Wataoka family tea shop, which had been destroyed in the bombing, in the same spot and under the same name, Wataoka Daigaen. Chizuko’s daughter later took over the shop from her mother, and also began sharing her family’s experience of the bombing.