Though it can be read as a standalone article, this is the third in a series on the Himeyuri Student Corps covering one of the caves used to support the Haebaru Okinawa Army Hospital.

On the surface the only tell-tale signs of a cave are a pair of small subterranean entrances by an expanse of fields but descending the stairs leads to a 270 meter limestone cave, or “gama” in Okinawan, that on its natural beauty alone merits a potential visit but its history makes this a place anyone interested in Okinawa’s wartime experience needs to see.

During the first half of the Battle of Okinawa as the Okinawa Army Hospital buried in the hills of Haebaru became overwhelmed with patients and was under the constant threat of attack a limestone cave was quietly being prepared to support it.

For about three months beginning in February 1945 military units had moved in and out of the Abuchiragama in Itokazu, a village just a few kilometers from Haebaru. When they vacated and the first doctor, nurses and 14 Himeyuri Gakutotai (Himeyuri Student Corps) high school student nurses arrived May 1 it had been thoroughly abandoned and they would have to fabricate beds and make do without supplies or support from headquarters as they set up the clinic cave. Candle light for illumination would have to suffice, like at Haebaru, though this cave once had working electric lights run on a power generator at a nearby sugar mill but the generator had ceased to function.

It’s time as a medical center would be very short but described by medical officer Lt. Nishihara Morimasa as a picture of hell. Like at Haebaru there wasn’t enough medical supplies, amputations were conducted without anesthesia and keeping the cave sanitary wasn’t possible. Beside physical injuries such as shrapnel and bullet wounds many soldiers also suffered from tetanus, which causes jaw, neck and abdominal muscles to seize up and swallowing becomes difficult, and encephalitis, which is the inflammation of the brain that can cause headaches, fevers and in severe cases hallucinations, unconsciousness and seizures. There wasn’t much the staff could do to ease their suffering.

Encephalitic Patient Area

For Hibino Katsuhiro, who was nearly immobilized and inflicted with tetanus, when one of the students took the time to delicately pluck the maggots from his wound it was like seeing an angel in hell.

From the student nurses’ perspective the tetanus patients confined in the wood shuttered ward like Hibino kept their eyes wide open and just stared at them as they worked, as if begging for them to get them out of there.

The situation in Abuchiragama was just as bad as Haebaru. They had between 500-700 patients to tend with about 20 staff, working in dark caverns filled with patient’s unceasing moaning and the smell of decay and excrement with nowhere to escape. In this environment the nurses performed the odious but necessary tasks that kept the clinic running.

Morgue and Staff Break Area

They assisted doctors with amputations, prepared and passed out food, tended patients wounds and bodily needs, cleaning up after them, disposing of limbs and excrement as well as retrieving food and acting as messengers.

According to Himeyuri student nurse Yabiku Yoshiko by mid-month the situation was entirely out of hand. The brain fever cases kept rising and the maddened and deranged men were physical hazards to the patients around them. Food was so short that patients would insist that amputated limbs be cooked to supplement their meager rations.

On May 25 the evacuation order was given, the staff and walking wounded gathered their supplies and left for another cave even further south as American forces drew closer to Shuri and the battle lines were being re-drawn for the Japanese 32^nd Army’s final suicidal fight. Those that couldn’t move were left behind with false promises that others would comer retrieve them. The suicides began a few days later as patients realized they had been abandoned and lost hope.

Survivors held out and civilians moved in, living in the dark off the leftovers from the hospital and occasionally foraging at night. The cave was discovered by American forces Jun. 6 and several attempts were made to forcibly evacuate the occupants with artillery, fire, and white phosphorus but the cave dwellers refused to be smoked out. Most didn’t leave until Aug. 22 when Japanese soldiers informed them the war was over. Three final holdouts were removed by the Americans a month later.

Today the cave is preserved; almost all signs of its former inhabitants are gone and safety measures such as reinforcement and some guard rails have been installed and signs around the cave denote in both Japanese and English what each part was once used for.

During wartime Abuchiragama was a small functional, on a basic level, underground hospital and village. Wards were split between different chambers and a surgeon’s “office” and treatment area were arranged under one of the few light-giving air holes in the upper end of one of the larger chambers. There were also marked rest rooms, a cooking area, rest areas and a morgue.

Surgeon’s Office and Air Hole

As we went through my guide who spoke little English would try to explain some of stories such as how grenades were dropped through an air hole and pointed at debris still stuck to the ceiling from a bomb explosion.

Even without its tragic history this is a fascinating cave. Limestone caves are like natural works of art with the way the rocks formed and the void space is crafted. Following a guide through Abuchiragama while he would point out what different sections were used for as we walked through, sometimes I just had to stop and admire its composition. The cave is not even but multilayered upper and lower levels with nooks and switchbacks. Rocks worn down by water and time have bulbous and smooth unusual shapes and the ceiling is covered with stalactite fangs. At times the cave is so low I have to mind my head and at others it expands into an underground valley that could hold a small house.

Marry this to the manmade aspects such as the rock pillars, bridge ends marking where a stone bridge once spanned the underground river, the well and a row of earthen ovens and it’s not like any other cavern I’ve seen before.

Bridge ruin and well

Ovens

Near the cave entrance is a small park with a Type 89 Japanese 15-cm howitzer in excellent shape and a dissected Type 93 torpedo on display. The only other Type 89 I’ve ever seen was at the Yushukan in Tokyo, there are not many of these left. This one was used by the 100^th independent heavy artillery battalion and found covered with dirt near a bunker. Briefly artillerymen had visited the cave after destroyed their artillery pieces.

There is no English guided tour but that’s no impediment to getting a lot out of Abuchiragama. Before coming down the staff in the visitor center gave me an English language pamphlet and I watched a five minute video that goes over the cave story. Also while in the visitor center take the time to look at the collection of artifacts.

I also strongly recommend that you visit their website (http://abuchiragama.com/en/) before visiting and reading the four survivor testimonies and history. Looking at those before visiting can help you better understand how people lived down here and what they endured.

While not necessary, you should make a reservation before coming to the cave. When I first visited on a Tuesday I was unable to go down because they were booked for the entire day with tour groups. I made a reservation from Saturday morning and was the only reservation they had all day. I had the cave all to myself for the entirety of my visit.

Helmets are provided but you can bring your own flashlight, otherwise it’s an additional charge. I brought a small Maglite and my guide had his own light and it worked but if possible you should bring a bigger light.

Admission is 300 yen for adults and 150 for children.

Photography is not allowed inside the cave; so I appreciate Itokazu Abuchiragama for allowing me permission to shoot for this article.

After visiting Abuchiragama you can drive up the hill across the street and visit the ruins of Itokazu Castle, which was built of limestone in the 14th century. The ruins are free to enter.

Next we’re heading down to the southern caves where the Himeyuri Gakutotai evacuated to and we will also be looking at some of the other high school girls conscripted to serve in the Shiraume and Fuji Gakutotai.

ADDRESS
Itokazu Abuchiragama
667-1 Tamagusuku, Nanjo, Okinawa 901-1400
098-852-6608
http://abuchiragama.com/en/

REFERENCES
Himeyuri Peace Museum Guidebook (Yabiku Yoshiko testimony)