Video: Survivors recall horror of Tokyo firebombing 80 years on

Eighty years ago, on the night of March 9-10, 1945, Shizuko Nishio was just six years old, eagerly awaiting her birthday. But what was meant to be a joyful time quickly turned into a nightmare as US B-29 bombers launched a devastating firebombing raid on Tokyo. This was a night that would transform her life forever.

As US planes dropped incendiary bombs, creating a firestorm that obliterated large parts of Tokyo, Nishio clung to her mother, unaware of the horrors that would unfold. The raid, one of the deadliest in World War II, killed at least 80,000 people, with some estimates suggesting that more than 100,000 perished. It remains one of the most destructive conventional bombing raids in history, often overshadowed by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki later that year.

That night, Nishio and her family fled to a nearby school for shelter, following a warning from her father. Despite the packed conditions, they hoped for safety. But the situation quickly worsened as wave after wave of bombers dropped incendiaries on the city, creating a massive inferno that engulfed over 16 square miles of Tokyo. Tragically, Nishio's 19-year-old cousin and a nurse who had stayed behind to help in the shelter were among the hundreds who died in the flames. They were discovered later, "steamed" alive by the intense heat.

By dawn on March 10, Nishio and her family emerged from the shelter only to find their city had been reduced to a wasteland. The landscape was unrecognizable, with charred bodies scattered across the ground like "human logs." Nishio recalls, "It was like the surface of the Moon."

This attack, which specifically targeted civilians, was part of a strategy devised by US General Curtis LeMay. His goal was not only to destroy military targets but also to dismantle Japan's economy by burning down residential areas and factories. British historian Richard Overy describes the raid as a deliberate attempt to create an "unstoppable conflagration" to break Japan's war economy. However, the extent of the destruction and the loss of civilian life were staggering, and the raid on Tokyo remains one of the deadliest conventional bombings in history.

Despite its scale, the firebombing of Tokyo is often overshadowed by the atomic bombings that followed. Overy notes that while the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are well-remembered, the firebombing raid on Tokyo—causing even more deaths—remains underappreciated in historical discussions.

Yoko Kitamura, who was eight years old at the time of the bombing, recalls the "eerie red" glow of the sky and the sounds of the devastating firestorm. "It was bright like it was daytime," she remembers, as the fire spread through her neighbourhood. In the aftermath, she saw firsthand the toll of the bombing, with people fleeing for their lives, some of whom were caught in the flames.

Kitamura, who later became a doctor, says she never fully recovered from the psychological scars of that night. She recalls the sounds of air raid sirens that haunted her throughout her life and how the echo of ambulances would always remind her of those dark days. "How stupid mankind is, killing each other," Kitamura says, reflecting on the horrors of war.

For Nishio, watching the ongoing war in Ukraine today brings painful memories of her childhood trauma. "When I watched television about the Ukraine situation, a little girl was crying at a shelter... I thought this is me!" she says, a stark reminder of the universal tragedy of war and its impact on innocent lives.

Eighty years after the firebombing of Tokyo, the memories of survivors like Nishio and Kitamura serve as powerful reminders of the devastation wrought by war. Their stories highlight the horrors of that fateful night and the enduring resilience of those who survived, determined to share their experiences and ensure such suffering is never forgotten.