Sunday 30 September 2012

Nepal plane crash victims' bodies may not be released to families for weeks

Officials told The Telegraph it could be more than a month before their bodies are released.

Seven British men, Raymond Eagle, 58, Christopher Davey, 51, Vincent Kelly, 50, Darren Kelly, 45, Timothy Oakes, 57, Stephen Holding, 60, and Benjamin Ogden, 27, were among 19 passengers and crew killed when their light aeroplane crashed minutes after taking off from Kathmandu airport in Nepal last Friday.

Accident investigators believe the pilot panicked and lost control of the Dornier twin turboprop when a bird hit one of the propellers and crashed while trying to make a sharp turn for an emergency landing.

Officials of Sita Air said the plane caught fire within minutes of the take off, while residents of the tin shack shanty town close to where it crashed said they heard passengers screaming and saw them waving their arms as it nosedived.

The forensic scientist heading the investigation into the cause of the 19 deaths, including four Chinese trekkers, five Nepalese passengers and three crew, has told The Telegraph they all died "on impact", but the fire which engulfed the plane had left most of the bodies "unrecognisable."

The bodies of five Nepali victims, including the aircrew, the British trekkers' tour guide and a local passenger, were released last night after their families identified them from dental records and possessions found on them, including jewellery.

Sunday 30 September 2012

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/nepal/9577170/Nepal-plane-crash-victims-bodies-may-not-be-released-to-families-for-weeks.html

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