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August 9 - Nagasaki Day
On August 9, 1945, a US B-29 Bomber named Bockscar attacked the Japanese city of Nagasaki with an atomic weapon. Named as “Fat Man”, the bomb had an explosive force of 22,000 tons which was enough to kill 40,000 people instantly. The attack took place at 11.02 a.m. This was a mass murder following the first atomic attack on Hiroshima 3 days earlier. By the end of 1945, more than 75,000 innocent civilians were dead in Nagasaki. Thousands of other people had suffered serious injuries and till the date, the incidents of deaths among the survivors have continued due to the effects of radiation poisoning. The world was never the same again.
The barbaric attack proved the awesome power of nuclear weapons for killing and maiming. It was an act of massive destruction of civilian population. Schools, hospitals, important institutions, everything was destroyed within seconds. Though, we are into the 65th year of the incident and yet, the aftereffects remain. It is not easy to get rid of ghosts of atomic attack on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. People are still wondering what was the fault of those innocent civilians. We observe Nagasaki Day every year on August 9 and pray that incident like that never happens again on earth.
The survivors of the attack have just one message, “Never Again!” Nagasaki Day is a reminder of destructive abilities of nuclear weapons. The day demands us of re-committing ourselves to the cause of nuclear disarmament. World should pay more attention to reduce and eliminate nuclear arms. As of now, there are estimated to be 23,000 nuclear weapons in the world and that is more than sufficient to destroy our planet several times. Peace rallies are organized by non-governmental agencies and masses on this day for a better and secure world. Great efforts need to be made to ensure the horror inflicted on the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki is never, ever repeated.
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