The first wartime use of an atomic bomb will be remembered at Nanaimo's 14th annual Lanterns for Peace ceremony.
Lanterns will be launched at Swy-a-lana Lagoon, in Maffeo Sutton Park, at dusk Thursday (Aug. 6), which will mark the 70th anniversary of the destruction of Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945.
The City of Nanaimo has declared Aug. 6 Hiroshima Day in keeping with Nanaimo’s status as a nuclear weapons-free city and with past proclamations.
The ceremony, organized by the Nanaimo chapter of Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, is open to children and families and starts shortly after 8 p.m. with Japanese folk dance and peace songs by The Owl and The Pussycat.
The Lantern Ceremony starts at 9 p.m. with music by the Everybody Sings Choir, Joan Wallace, Mama’s Kitchen, Nordli Nanaimo Harbour City Seniors Ukelele Group, Margaret Sutton and words by Nanaimo-Cowichan MP Jean Crowder and Nanaimo MLA Leonard Krog.
The lanterns will be launched at 9:30 p.m.