Overview
The bomb exploded some six hundred metres above and 150 metres to the south-east, so the blast pressed down on the building rather than sideways, which is why the walls and the dome’s steel frame remained. Everyone inside was killed instantly. The city debated for two decades whether to demolish it as a painful ruin or keep it, and a schoolgirl’s diary published after her death from radiation illness turned public opinion toward preservation; it was listed by UNESCO in 1996.
Highlights
Walk around the full perimeter — the north side, away from the river, shows the collapsed interior most clearly. Come at night, when it is lit and the park is empty, and again by day. Conservation work stabilises the fabric without restoring it, so nothing you see has been rebuilt.