Let’s go into the gama and hear what happened during the Battle of Okinawa from the guide!
The Itoman Abuchiragama Information Center (formerly the Nanbu Tourist Information Center) is located in Aza Itokazu, Tamaki, Nanjo City, and is permanently equipped with a reception desk for visitors to enter the natural cave, Itokazu Abuchiragama, as well as tourist information and a multipurpose hall.
During the Battle of Okinawa, the 270-meter-long Abuchiragama was used as a camp shelter for the Japanese Army and as a branch of the Nanpuhara Army Hospital, where military doctors and Himeyuri students were stationed, and also as a refuge for residents of the Itokazu community.
Today, it is visited by many people on school excursions and by schools in the prefecture as a place for peace education.
To enter Abuchiragama, visitors must be accompanied by a guide, so reservations are required.
Point 1: Natural shelter of the former Nanpuhara Army Shelter Hospital Annex
Abuchiragama comes from the Okinawan dialect meaning “deep vertical cave (abu),” “cliff (chira),” or “cave or hollow (gama).
At the time of the Battle of Okinawa, it was the designated evacuation shelter for the Itokazu community, and many residents took refuge there. It was also used as a camp shelter and warehouse for the Japanese Army. When the battlefield moved southward, it became a branch of the Nanpuhara Army Shelter Hospital, where military doctors and Himeyuri Students were assigned, and wounded soldiers were brought in.
After the retreat to the south on May 22, the survivors were attacked by gas can explosions, and it was not until August 22 that they left the shelter.
Point 2: A guide and flashlight are required to enter the toad.
Itokazu Abuchiragama, a branch of the Nanpuhara Army Shelter Hospital where ordinary residents also took refuge, is now a place for peace education, visited by children and students from inside and outside of the prefecture. Visitors are only allowed to enter the toadstools with a guide, so make a reservation in advance. Also, you will need to bring a flashlight and gloves, so be prepared. It is dark and slippery inside the gama, so sandals and slippers are not allowed.
Some areas are off-limits to visitors, so please follow the guide’s instructions and walk carefully inside the gama.
Point 3: You don’t have to force yourself into a bunker.
Abuchiragama is visited by many people as a place to learn about peace, but some people have died in the gama because it used to be a branch of the Nanpuhara army shelter.
As our guides say, we do not ask visitors to enter the shelter if they feel sick. If you do not feel well, you can go outside and take a rest inside the center.
Also, once inside the shelter, there is a one-minute session in which participants listen to a story while experiencing darkness with their flashlights turned off. If you are not comfortable in the dark, please ask your guide for advice.
Enter the gama as long as you do not feel overwhelmed.
