UENO, Gunma Prefecture--Relatives of the 520 people who perished in Japan’s worst air disaster marked the 40th anniversary of the crash by trekking to the mountain ridge where the Japan Airlines jumbo jet disintegrated.

At an elevation of more than 1,500 meters, bereaved family members from around the country prayed for the souls of their loved ones.

They began their ascent on Mount Osutakayama early in the morning. Elderly mourners relied on walking sticks for support.

Mourners presented flowers and clasped their hands in prayer before grave markers on the mountainside. The sound of a bell rang out at a monument on the ridge, carrying prayers for aviation safety.

The 1985 crash claimed the lives of 520 passengers and crew members, making it the world’s deadliest aviation accident involving a single aircraft. There were four survivors.

INDIVIDUAL MEMORIES

Miki Orita, an elementary school teacher from Hokkaido, came to pray for her father, Ryohei Murakami, who was on a business trip when the plane came down.

A company envelope was found at the crash site a month later.

On it, Murakami, who was 43, had written, “The plane is swaying violently from side to side” and “I hear voices from the cabin saying, ‘We must hang in there.’”

One message was addressed to his family: “Please live well and happy. Goodbye.” It was written in shaky handwriting.

Orita, 53, was a second-year junior high school student at the time of the accident.

One of her pupils at the elementary school where she teaches used to be in the habit of saying to others, “Drop dead.”

Wanting to convey that life is precious, Orita revealed her personal loss for the first time, saying, “I wanted to tell my father, ‘I loved you so much.’”

The pupil’s behavior changed. Orita has since made it a point to share her story of the accident with her pupils before the summer vacation.

Orita said she planned to place flowers at her father’s grave marker and report to him: “Everyone is doing well. I am still doing my best at my job as a teacher.”

Takatoshi Yamamoto, from Yachiyo, Chiba Prefecture, made his first memorial climb for his uncle Rokuro Ishikura, who was 41.

“He was a kind and funny uncle,” said Yamamoto, 53. “I have many memories of him from my childhood.”

He offered prayers at the grave marker, mouthing: “I am sorry it took me 40 years to come. I have never forgotten you.”

Yamamoto said he felt the passage of time because the crash site looked so different from the television footage 40 years ago.

Another nephew, Sadanori Iso, arrived early in the morning from Hitachinaka, Ibaraki Prefecture, with 12 family members.

His children have joined him in the memorial climb since they were very young.

Iso, 54, noted the generational shift occurring among the bereaved families.

“But no explanation is needed when you come to this mountain,” he said. “The atmosphere here alone allows you to understand just how tragic the accident was.

“Forty years on, I feel more strongly than ever that it is our important role, as surviving family members, to confront the accident and pass its story on to the next generation.”

Risako Uchino, 65, from Kawasaki, climbed to the ridge with her daughter and son-in-law and her two grandchildren, aged 2 and 5.

Her father, Shinjiro Minami, was 54 years old when he was killed. In December, her mother, Reiko, died at the age of 90.

“I wonder if you have met Mom in the afterlife,” Uchino told her father. “My grandchildren came with me today. We are all doing fine.”

Minami’s body was never recovered. His death was confirmed through dental records and a dental bridge.

Uchino recalled that her mother said she placed his dental bridge in his urn.

She said she found the bridge inside the urn and it brought back memories of those days.

“Fewer and fewer people know about the accident, but these memories must be passed down,” Uchino said.

Fumiharu Nishimura, 76, came from Toyonaka, Osaka Prefecture, to pay respects to his brother-in-law, Takayuki Ozawa, who was 29 at the time.

“He was a friendly, good guy,” Nishimura recalled.

Ozawa would often stop by his home after work to share a beer with him because his workplace was nearby.

With the passing years, Nishimura now makes the climb with frequent breaks.

“I have been able to make it up here again this year,” he said as he stood in front of Ozawa’s grave marker.

Chikara Akada climbed the mountain with his wife and two children, carrying 12 red roses in a backpack.

“They are a ‘love letter’ my father sends to my mother once a year,” said Akada, 42.

Akada, who was 2 years old at the time of the disaster, has no memories of his mother, Mariko, who was a flight attendant. She was 31 years old.

His father, Yuichi, 70, told him about how they met, her dream of becoming a flight attendant and details of the accident.

Yuichi can no longer make the climb due to age issues, and Chikara’s family places flowers at Mariko’s grave marker in his place.

Chikara’s eldest son, Tamon, accompanies his father almost every year.

“As someone who does not know about the accident myself, I want to pass on what my father has taught me to the next generation,” said Tamon, 15.

(This article was written by Yuji Masuyama, Junichi Obata, Masahide Miyajima, Hisaki Tamanaha, Mako Orii and Ariha Noma.)