Body found on board Norman Atlantic ferry

Another burnt body has been found on board the wreck of the Norman Atlantic, bringing to ten the number of passengers who died when the Italian ferry which caught fire in December.

The body was found in the cabin of a lorry, the first missing person to be discovered since the deadly fire on December 28th, Rai News reported.

The discovery was made during an inspection of the wreck in Bari, where the Norman Atlantic was towed after first being brought to Brindisi. The body has since been taken to be examined by coroners, in the hope of identifying the victim.

Ten passengers are now known to have died in the ferry disaster, with the bodies of nine people recovered from the sea immediately after the accident. An additional two seamen died during the rescue operation.

There are still 18 people missing based on the passenger list, La Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno reported.

Passengers may have become trapped in their vehicles as the fire spread, while there are also fears that stowaways may have died in the accident.

Tuesday 3 January 2014

http://www.thelocal.it/20150203/body-found-on-board-norman-atlantic-ferry

Synagogue building collapse: S.Africa to repatriate last of Nigerian church victims

South Africa said Monday it will this week bring back the remaining bodies of its nationals killed in the Nigerian Synagogue Church guesthouse collapse four months ago.

Minister in the presidency Jeff Radebe told reporters that a South African airforce C130 aircraft would be dispatched to Lagos Monday “to bring the mortal remains of those that have been positively identified.”

Of the 81 bodies, 70 were repatriated in November, two months after a multi-storey building collapsed at the Lagos church of the influential Nigerian preacher TB Joshua.

The outstanding 11 were still undergoing DNA identification.

“Our repatriation team is departing this afternoon for Lagos,” said Radebe, and “when they land, we will know precisely how many South Africans will be repatriated.”

Nigerian authorities have been driving the testing and verification process.

A delayed rescue operation, “climatic conditions” and the sheer number of victims that had to be identified were responsible for the prolonged wait for the bodies, said Radebe.

The disaster killed 116 people in all, including Nigerians and other foreign nationals.

Tuesday 3 January 2015

http://thenewsnigeria.com.ng/2015/02/02/synagogue-building-collapse-south-africa-takes-home-final-11-bodies/

AirAsia flight QZ8501: Indonesian search crews find seven bodies near plane wreckage

Indonesian divers have found another seven victims of the AirAsia plane crash, taking to 84 the number of bodies retrieved since the accident in late December.

Two bodies were found inside the fuselage of the plane on Monday, while another four were located near the wreckage on the bottom of the Java Sea, AirAsia said in a statement.

Another body was located on Sunday as Indonesia's national search and rescue agency BASARNAS resumed operations.

Divers had taken a two-day break after searching at sea for weeks in poor weather conditions.

"To date, BASARNAS has confirmed to have recovered a total of 84 remains of which 64 remains have been identified by [the Disaster Victim Identification Police Department Republic of Indonesia], 13 remains are still being identified and seven remains have yet to arrive at Bhayangkara Hospital, Surabaya," the statement said.

The mission is continuing to search for the bodies of the remaining 78 people aboard flight QZ8501, which went down in stormy weather during what was supposed to be a short trip from the Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore.

The search and rescue operation using vessels, sea riders and inflatable boats is focused on the area around the Karimata Strait and the Java Sea.

"[Search and rescue] vessels and sea divers were deployed in order to locate more passengers and plane debris around the area," AirAsia said in the statement.

The Indonesian military, which has provided the bulk of personnel and equipment for the operation, withdrew from the search last week.

Civilian search and rescue agency BASARNAS is expected to re-evaluate whether to continue their search mission over the coming days.

The agency said the main aim of the operation was to find more bodies, not to lift the plane's fuselage, which has split in two.

Tuesday 3 January 2015

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-03/airasia-flight-qz8501-search-crews-find-seven-victims/6064548