At 22:30 on 1 August, the hour of the 1945 bombing, three white shakudama go up.
On 1 August, at 22:30 (the exact time in 1945 when the bombing that killed 1,489 people began), three white shakudama go up in memory of the victims. On 2 and 3 August, the heart of the festival, about 20,000 fireworks are launched on the bed of the Shinano River, including the Phoenix, created in 2004 after the Chūetsu earthquake: golden phoenixes about 2 km wide, with, according to a local legend, a blue phoenix among the golden ones for anyone lucky enough to see it. In 2019 the festival drew 1.08 million spectators.
The festival began as a ‘reconstruction festival’ on 1 August 1946, a year after the bombing that destroyed 80% of central Nagaoka and killed 1,489 people: since then, every year, it has paired the memory of that night with the rebirth of the city. On the evening of 1 August, at 22:30, three all-white shakudama commemorate the victims; on 2 and 3 August the fireworks include the sanjaku-dama (91 cm in diameter) and the Phoenix, created in 2004 to pray for reconstruction after the Chūetsu earthquake of 23 October that year and to give thanks for the support received from all over Japan: golden phoenixes about 2 km wide, launched at 20:45 on both evenings.
ℹ️ The fireworks are launched from the bed of the Shinano River and can be seen from both banks in central Nagaoka; on clear nights the largest bursts are visible to the naked eye as far as Sado, 60 km away. 2026 dates: 1–3 August. ⚠️ The marker is on Ōte-dōri, the street that links Nagaoka Station to the river and the main viewing area, not on a precise point of the riverbed, where the launch zone changes from one year to the next.
🚉 Nagaoka · 4 min walk
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