Pre+Bomb+Buildings

When an atomic bomb explodes it never actually hits the ground; the bomb is activated in midair and forms kind of a mushroom shape; therefore, the building that the bomb was dropped directly over survived the bombing. One of the lucky buildings that survived the explosion was the Industrial Promotion Hall. It was built in 1915 and designed by the Czech architect Jan Letzel. A few days after the atomic bomb was dropped, the Japanese government wanted to build a peace memorial to portray the message that something like this should never happen again. The ruins of one of the only buildings that survived the atomic bomb seemed like the perfect place to build the memorial. After that the Hiroshima Peace Memorial was born! The building serves as a reminder of the horrors of the atomic bomb and how no country should resort to something like that ever again.

Another building that survived the explosion was Eizo Nomura which only its basement was used completely as a rest house. The Akiko Takakura was one of the closest buildings to the center of the blast that still survived. The air raid shelters of most homes that were at least a half mile away from the original explosion were safe, but the shelters that were closer had their roofs caved in and were completely destroyed. Roof tiles placed on buildings were melted by the initial flash. About 50 buildings made of heavily enforced concrete designed to hold up against earthquakes still stood after the destruction of the explosion, but the insides of these buildings were completely empty of doors, windows, and frames.