Thursday, April 23, 2009

Getting lucky?

I read the following item in the April 20th edition of National Review.

Nagasaki resident Mr. Tsutomu Yamaguchi was on a business trip in Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. The atom bomb caught him in the open, and he was badly burned. After stumbling through the shattered city and its horrors for some hours, Mr. Yamaguchi managed to get on a train back to his home town. After treatment for his injuries, he dutifully reported back to work at his company in Nagasaki on the morning of August 9. His boss demanded an explanation for his bandaged appearance, and was incredulous when told of the destruction of Hiroshima (of which the Japanese media had said nothing). He had just lost his temper and accused Mr. Yamaguchi of lying when there was an almighty flash ... Mr. Yamaguchi, now 93 years old, has been formally certified as one of the very few to have survived both nuclear blasts; and, of that few, to have been closest to both -- about two miles in each case.

My initial reaction was, What bad luck! What are the odds of being in both Hiroshima and Nagasaki on the respective days the bomb was dropped? Tommy's first thought, however, when I read the item to him, was that the man had incredibly good luck: What, after all, are the odds of surviving two atomic blasts and living to the age of 93?

What do you think?

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