Japanese Officials Report 33 Dead Following Kyoto Animation Arson

Sometimes there just aren’t words. Following yesterday’s tragic arson attack on the Kyoto Animation Studio, 33 people have been reported to have died as a result of the incident according to Japanese officials. The fire, which started on Thursday at 10:30AM in Japan’s time zone, also resulted in injuries that affected 36 others. A suspect has been taken into custody according to authorities, who was reportedly seen pouring a flammable liquid in and around the building itself. This attack came about shortly after the head of the studio had received threatening emails, as per his report.

NHK World News made the official report on their Twitter Account earlier today, documenting the new details earlier this morning:

Originally started in 1981, Kyoto Animation Studio has become known worldwide for its work on creating popular anime television series such as K-On!, Free!, Full Metal Panic, and more. It has also created a number of animated films such as A Silent Voice, K-On! The Movie, and Free! Take Your Marks to name a few. Noted as the “first successful animation studio outside of Tokyo”, Kyoto Animation has a long history within the industry and we hope that its history will continue into the future. With a quote reported in the NHK article as “Kyoto Animation having an indelible impact on Japan’s Animation industry”, the studio must be respected for its contributions to the medium.

Originally founded by Yoko Hatta and Hideaki Hatta, a couple who were looking to create a production studio in the early 80s, it proceeded to become an LLC in 1985 and then a corporation years later in 1999. One of the studio’s apparent strengths according to experts was its “sensitivity to the wonders and quandaries of every day life“. We’d be hard pressed to think of a bigger tragedy to hit the world of anime in recent memory.

Comicbook.com will continue to provide updates on the situation as they are released. Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this tragedy.