Unclaimed corpses of bomb victims in mortuary

Eight months after the bomb blasts at COCIN Church Headquarters and St. Finnbar Catholic Church in Jos,capital of Nigeria’s state of Plateau, unclaimed corpses of some victims are still in Plateau Specialist Hospital.

Dr Sanusi Gidado, the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Plateau Specialist Hospital, Jos, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Jos on Tuesday, that the corpses constituted serious challenges to the hospital.

COCIN Church headquarters was bombed in February while St. Finnbar Cathedral was hit in March 2012, killing several people while many others sustained injuries.

“We are having serious challenges at the mortuary which has already been filled up. “The corpses of the people affected by the bomb blasts at both COCIN Headquarters and St. Finbarrs Cathedral are still in mortuary unclaimed.

“Some of the corpses are beyond recognition; we want the authorities to help us evacuate them,” he said.

Gidado said the hospital’s management had taken the step toward burying the bodies as discussions had begun with the authorities of Jos North Local Government Area of the state.

“If not for the ongoing strike, we could have completed that task and overcome the challenge.

“We won’t mind to foot the bill of burying the corpses, but we must get the cemetery that we can use for that purpose.

“As soon as the local government workers resume, we shall revisit the issue to evacuate the corpses and decongest the mortuary,’’ he said.

Gidado attributed the problem to the inability of the victims’ relatives to identify their corpses, adding: “You can’t claim a body you don’t know“.

The director, however, advised the general public to endeavour to check the hospitals whenever any of their loved ones was missing.

Wednesday 5 December 2012

http://pmnewsnigeria.com/2012/12/04/unclaimed-corpses-of-bomb-victims-in-mortuary/

Three dead, 11 trapped in flooded mine in NE China

Eleven miners remain trapped underground at a flooded coal mine in Qitaihe city in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province, with rescue work continuing.

Three miners were confirmed dead in the accident early on Tuesday.

The bodies of the three, Dong Zhanjiang, Wang Jifeng and Gao Chuanjun, were recovered at about 1 am on Tuesday after a 48-hour rescue attempt.

The Furuixiang Coal Mine flooded at about 11:40 pm on Saturday as 22 miners were working underground. Six managed to escape.

After 10 hours, rescuers reached two miners, Wen Hongfu and Wang Yaquan, who are slightly injured and being treated at Qitaihe City People's Hospital. They are in stable condition and can leave within 10 days, their doctor told China Daily.

As of Tuesday evening, six water aspirators capable of draining 555 metric tons of water an hour were being used to pump water from the mine. "But rescuers cannot predict when the water will be drained," said Li Shuguang, an official in charge of emergency response with the city's work safety bureau.

Rescuers are drilling down from a position about 285 meters underground to try to reach those trapped and once they have broken through oxygen, food and water can be sent to the miners.

Relatives of those trapped are anxiously awaiting news.

The mother of Bao Qingbo, 36, and his brother Bao Qingfeng, 33, said: "My two sons are still underground in the mine. They left home on Saturday and I thought they would come back the next day as usual. But at 6 am the next morning, my neighbour told me about the flood.

"We believe they are still alive and will wait for them at home."

Wednesday 5 December 2012

http://www.shanghaidaily.com/nsp/National/2012/12/05/11%2Bmissing%2Bin%2Bflooded%2Bmine/

Race against time in New Bataan

"We knew this was coming, but we didn't expect this much damage," said a resident, one of the survivors of the devastation of typhoon "Pablo" in this small town in the province of Compostela Valley.

One of the hardest-hit areas during the onslaught of the storm, New Bataan is now racing against time to rescue those who are still alive and injured and retrieve those who have perished. (To know more about the town read "Where the 68 lay dead" here.)

A total of 44 bodies buried in debris and mud were already retrieved while 77 were still missing on Wednesday, December 5.

Dozens of unidentified bodies

Out of the 44 casualties, only 13 were identified, including 8-year old Rena Mae Adlawan. Her mother, Bebeng, and sister, Jade, are still missing.

Adlawan’s cousin, Sadrak Adlawan, said the family was in their home in Barangay Andap when the deluge came. Rena Mae’s father was with Sadrak in San Francisco, Agusan del Sur. Both were trying to return home to be with their families during the typhoon.

When we arrived in New Bataan, we could not find our houses and our relatives,” Sadrak said. She said 9 of their relatives, including Bebeng and Jade, are still missing.

While crying and kneeling in front of Rena Mae’s lifeless body, the remaining family members asked her where the mother, sister and other relatives were.

For Walterio Dapadap Jr, no one must be blamed for the deaths, injuries and damages.

“We should accept what happened in our town,” Dapadap said while nursing several wounds in his arms, legs and body.

His father died when their home was swept away by the flashflood in Sitio Kalamkan, Purok 10.

“But this is really dreadful. We know that there is a typhoon coming but we did not expect that it would cause this much damage,” Dapadap said.

Making a living on their crops, including coconuts, corn and ginger, Dapadap and his family are already planning to rebuild their lives, destroyed in just a few hours.

Dapadap narrated that flood started to swamp their area at around 4 am on Tuesday, December 3.

“It was very fast. The water came with strong winds and tore down everything in its path including houses and trees. We were helpless,” Dapadap said.

Mayor Lorenzo Balbin said the local government and other government agencies that responded are doing their best to rescue and retrieve the missing residents of New Bataan.

“We are suffering badly right now but we are doing our best,” Balbin said.

At least 6 areas, including Sitio Pagsilaan in Barangay Andap, Cogonon, Panag, Camanlangan and Fatima are still isolated and cannot be reached by the rescue teams, Balbin said.

A total of 600 families were affected and 500 had been evacuated. Power is still out and cellphone signal is patchy.

Wednesday 5 December 2012

http://www.rappler.com/nation/17356-race-against-time-in-new-bataan

Update: 'Pablo' death toll balloons to 238

The death toll from Typhoon "Pablo" (international name Bopha) ballooned to at least 238 people as rescue and retrieval operations intensified on Wednesday and local officials feared many more bodies could be found as rescuers reach hard-hit areas that had been isolated by landslides, floods and downed communications.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines' Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom), whose troops were engaged in ongoing disaster, relief and retrieval operations in areas ravaged by Pablo, reported that at least 143 people died from flash floods and landslides in the farming and mining provinces of Compostela Valley, specifically in the towns of Monkayo, New Bataan, Compostela, Montevista, Nabunturan and Pantukan.

“In the whole province of Compostela Valley the number of deaths has risen to 143. In New Bataan alone, 67 civilians and three of our soldiers died from flash flood,” said Eastmincom spokesperson Lt. Col. Lyndon Paniza.

Paniza added that 154 were also injured while 58 persons were missing including eight soldiers.

The Provincial Disaster Risk Management Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) of Davao Oriental, on the other hand, reported 82 fatalities either from flash floods, landslides or by fallen trees after the typhoon made landfall in the province before dawn Tuesday.

The PDRRMC said that the fatalities were recorded from the towns of Tarragona (1), Manay (1), Caraga (3), Banganga (31), Cateel (30) and Boston (16). It also reported that 21 more people were missing and 148 were injured in the province.

The other fatalities came from Caraga region with six dead, Northern Samar with one, two in Bukidnon, one more in Misamis Oriental, two in Misamis Occidental and one more in Siquijor.

Undersecretary Benito Ramos, executive director of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), meanwhile, announced that the agency has confirmed only 95 deaths from the typhoon's onslaught as of 1 p.m.

“We could not just confirm the number of fatalities from Comval (Compostela Valley) and Davao Oriental because we are still validating and cross-checking all field reports that are coming in,” Ramos said.

However, Ramos said that he expects the official number of fatalities to increase as there were many typhoon-ravaged areas that have yet to be reached by soldiers and policemen involved in the search, rescue and retrieval operations.

Aside from the rising number of fatalities, Ramos said that he also expects a massive damage in agriculture and infrastructure in the two provinces. There were initial reports that 75 per cent of the houses as well as private and government infrastructures along Pablo’s path were either totally or partially destroyed.

Ramos said that as of Wednesday afternoon, the weather has largely improved in Mindanao but the people in the typhoon-ravaged communities are still reeling from the massive destruction left by Pablo.

“It’s already sunny out there but the people there are asking for food, clothing and shelter. These are three basic services they need. Lahat sila ngayon ay mangiyak-ngiyak at humingi ng ayuda at tulong. Kaawa-awa ang kanilang kalagayan ngayon,” Ramos said.

Meanwhile, the national government, through the Department of Health (DOH), is sending body bags to the worst-hit areas while the recovered bodies, including children, are being processed for identification.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development has been attending to the basic needs of the displaced civilians who lost their houses and are staying in more than 80 evacuation centers

Tuesday 5 December 2012

http://www.philstar.com/nation/2012/12/05/880991/pablo-death-toll-balloons-238