Arson Attack Devastates Kyoto Animation
A fire destroyed Kyoto Animation’s Studio One Thursday morning at about 10 a.m. The fire was set by a man who is accusing Kyoto Animation of plagiarizing one of his stories.
Residents who live by the studio have reported that they heard yelling and then a loud explosion in the events leading up to the fire. One witness says that the man responsible for the attack yelled “You Die!” just before the fire broke out.
NHK, a broadcaster in Japan, reported that there were approximately 70 workers in the studio when the fire was set. Thirty-four are confirmed dead and thirty-five are injured, including the suspected arsonist. A few more are reported as missing, including Yasuhiro Takemoto, the director of the studio’s most popular projects.
This will be the deadliest fire in Japan since 2001 and the largest mass killing in the past two decades.
Police have released the name of suspected arsonist Shinji Aoba, 41, who has confessed to starting the fire with gasoline. He was also found to have a backpack containing knives. Aoba, who was injured in the fire, told police that Kyoto Animation had plagiarized one of his stories. Police have Aoba in custody but have not been able to formally arrest and interrogate him. Aoba is in the hospital suffering from severe burns and is currently unconscious.
Aoba has a criminal record, serving three years in prison on robbery charges. He’s also been treated for mental health issues. Aoba also had reportedly threatened to kill his neighbor, who told local news that Aoba made the threats after being asked to quiet down. Kyoto Animation officials have said that Aoba has never had any connections with the company.
In an interview with Japanese media, KyoAni CEO Hideaki Hatta gave a statement confirming that all of Studio One’s previous material had been destroyed in the fire. “I am deeply heartbroken,” Hatta said. “I can’t bear it. I never even in my dreams would have thought such a large disaster would happen. This a serious blow to our company and our industry.” Of the staff who lost their lives, Hatta said, “Every one of them was an excellent and wonderful colleague.”
Hatta also told reporters that he had no contact with Aoba prior to the attack, and that he had no information on any plagiarism accusations prior to this tragedy.
A fire inspector told The Hollywood Reporter that the building passed a safety inspection on October, 2018 but due to the size of the building it did not need a sprinkler system, which could have slowed the spread of the blaze.
Saturday fans of Kyoto Animation laid flowers outside the charred building to memorialize those who died in the blaze. Supporters of Kyoto Animation around the globe have taken to social media to show their support. #prayforkyoani has been trending on Twitter and Sentai Filmworks has started a GoFundMe campaign called “Help KyoAni Heal” which has already surpassed their goal of $750,000 reaching more than $1.6 million. How this aid will reach the victims of this attack is still in the works.
Kyoto Animation was established in 1981 and is famous for anime such as Violet Evergarden and Voice of Silence, both of which can be viewed on Netflix.
In the wake of this attack, Shochiku, a film distribution company, has suspended a trailer for Kyoto Animation’s very popular movie franchise Free! which was planned to be released this week. The company has not released why but it is thought to be in respect to the fire.
