Photo/Illutration A crane carefully carries a wall that was exposed to the blast of the 1945 atomic bombing in Naka Ward, Hiroshima, on Oct. 3. (Koichi Ueda)

HIROSHIMA--A wall in Hiroshima Andersen's flagship shop here was returned to its historic place in the building, where it was irradiated by the atomic bomb that devastated this city in 1945.

The shop, which contains a bakery and a restaurant, is being given a modern makeover to update its earthquake resistance.

Located about 360 meters east of ground zero, it is one of 85 existing buildings that survived the Aug. 6, 1945, atomic bombing within 5 kilometers of the blast.

At the time, the building housed Teikoku Bank's Hiroshima branch. In 1967, Andersen Group, a Hiroshima-based major baking company, bought it and kept using it by adding extensions to the structure.

Andersen's remodeled shop is scheduled to open next August.

According to Andersen Group, the 50-square-meter wall is one of the walls cut from the eastern side of the former building last October and was judged to be reusable as an outer wall.

On Oct. 3, the media were given a peek at the rebuilding work at the site. At 1 p.m., a large crane lifted the wall and secured it in place about 30 minutes later.

Andersen Group closed the shop in 2016, after the building was judged to be not earthquake-resistant.

“We want to keep using the building, feeling the weight of history while being grateful for the original building and the people of Hiroshima, who have loved and supported it,” said Hideki Kiyokawa, an operating officer and director of the public relations office of the company.