Another setback for Japan, occurred on the 7th December 1944, when a severe earthquake took place. To most of us it was our first experience, and we hoped our last, of such a calamity. Buildings swayed with a terrific creaking, telegraph poles and factory chimneys crashed down, large cracks appeared in the roads, water-mains burst spouting water dozens of feet into the air, and power cables were broken. Although the tremor lasted only a few minutes, it plunged Osaka, Kobe, Wakayama, and Kyoto into confusion and brought production to a standstill.
In December 1944, we experienced our first air-raid in Japan. During the night the sirens sounded, and we listened to the sound of aircraft overhead. The "All Clear" sounded about an hour later.
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