Hiroshima 66th Anniversary: Thoughts Of Fukushima Nuclear Plant Cloud Ceremonies (PHOTOS)

Japan's annual commemorations of the Aug. 6, 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima were particularly poignant this year, with thoughts quickly turning to those living near the Fukushima Nuclear Plant left crippled by the devastating March earthquake and tsunami.

As the Japan Times is reporting, many Hiroshima survivors and family members expressed solidarity with Fukushima victims during ceremonies on the eve of the 66th anniversary. "Nobody knows the fear and uncertainty Fukushima residents face over radiation levels better than the people of Hiroshima," 68-year-old Setsuko Kumazaki, who lost several relatives in Hiroshima, is quoted as saying.

As the Wall Street Journal reports, this year’s speech by Mayor Kazumi Matsui -- scheduled after a minute-long silence at 8:15 a.m., the time when the U.S. dropped a four-ton uranium bomb in the final days of World War II -- has been much anticipated because he is the city’s first mayor born after 1945, and the son of an A-bomb survivor. A U.S. representative is scheduled to attend the ceremony for the first time, the BBC reports.

Meanwhile, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan has vowed to scale back the nation's reliance on nuclear power and make more use of solar energy and other renewable power sources.

Check out poignant photos of this year's commemorations below: