Ghana: Bodies of Goil fire were not handled with dignity says former health chief

A former Director General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Professor Agyeman Badu Akosa has expressed disgust at the way the bodies of those who died in the fire at the Goil fuel station at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle were transported to the morgue.

He was of the view that a similar situation in other countries, especially in more developed countries, would have seen the bodies being wrapped in body bags.

“Anywhere else, all the bodies would have been put in body bags and the body bags would have been appropriately transported to the morgue.”

After last Wednesday’s floods and fire outbreak at the Goil Fuel Station, there were pictures and video footages of the dead bodies being put into the bucket of trucks and being transported to the morgues without any covering.

Prof. Badu Akosa told Citi News, the manner in which the bodies were handled was unprofessional and must not be repeated under any circumstances.

He explained that he was “very distressed the way their bodies were just hurled into the bucket of the pick-ups.”

According to him, it did not “in any way dignify the human beings who had lost their lives under such tragic circumstances. I think as a country, we can do better than that.”

Prof. Akosa pointed out that because the incident was a national catastrophe, “the first thing I would have thought that the morgues will do will be that if they do not have a cold room, they will embalm the bodies.”

“This is almost like a certificate of urgency so what you need to do is to preserve each body in as near the state in which it was brought to the morgue as possible even before relations are brought in to identify the bodies.”

He noted that the families of the victims are already apprehensive while getting into the morgue to identify their relatives “so if you expose more than one body to most people, they will not be actually looking at the body they have come to identify.”

“In most cases, you present the bodies in a manner that they can go from body to body to be able to identify.”

Wednesday 10 June 2015

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=361785

continue reading

Teams return to Mount Ontake to search for bodies, eight months on

Search teams returned to the peak of Mount Ontake on Wednesday for the first time in eight months to continue looking for the bodies of six hikers missing since the volcano erupted.

The disaster left 63 people dead or missing, bludgeoned by rocks and buried beneath scalding ash. Rescue work was called off last year when winter set in.

Around 50 people, including police, firefighters and volcanologists, began an exploratory ascent of the mountain in Nagano Prefecture with a view to resuming a full-scale search next month, after the conclusion of Japan’s annual rainy season.

The 3,067-meter peak was thronged with hikers viewing the region’s spectacular autumn colors when it burst unexpectedly to life on Sept. 27 last year.

It was Japan’s deadliest eruption in almost 90 years.

Dramatic mobile phone footage taken by survivors showed rocks raining down as clouds of ash engulfed people close to the summit.

Search and rescue teams last year trudged through thick, clay-like ash to recover 57 bodies in sometimes treacherous conditions, despite fears over toxic fumes and a possible further eruption.

The operation was suspended in October as autumn’s rains began to give way to snow, which soon made the peak impassable.

“There is a part of me that feels rather worried about what it is like up there,” said senior police officer Noriyuki Hayashi, of Nagano prefectural police, as the team prepared to ascend Mount Ontake. “But we will do what we can.”

The team observed a moment of silence below the mountain, which — even in the summer months of June — still has snow-covered ravines.

Aerial footage showed the searchers’ bright outerwear set against the gray lunar landscape of the ash-covered peak.

Ontake is one of scores of active volcanoes across the country, which sits on the so-called “Ring of Fire,” where a large proportion of the world’s quakes and eruptions are recorded.

Last month, authorities evacuated Kuchinoerabu Island, off the coast of Kyushu, when a volcano erupted there.

Autopsies on bodies recovered from Ontake last year revealed many of them died from injuries caused by flying rocks.

That led to a recommendation in March that people who climb Mount Fuji — also a volcano — should carry helmets and goggles with them.

Wednesday 10 June 2015

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/06/10/national/teams-return-mount-ontake-search-bodies-eight-months/#.VXhmEM9Viko

continue reading

Forensic science in search of the ‘disappeared’

During Guatemala’s internal armed conflict (1960-1996) almost 200,000 people are thought to have been killed or 'disappeared' at the hands of repressive and violent regimes. Those lives matter. Their families’ demands are clear: they want to know what happened to their loved ones and they want their remains returned. They need truth and justice.

Guatemala’s method of uncovering human rights violations can help other post-conflict areas, says Fredy Peccerelli.

Using forensic sciences, the Forensic Anthropology Foundation of Guatemala (FAFG) is assisting families by returning their loved ones’ remains, promoting justice, and setting the historical record straight.

A multidisciplinary process

The FAFG is a civil-society scientific organisation that works to strengthen the judicial system and respect human rights by investigating, documenting and generally uncovering evidence of human rights violations — particularly massacres and enforced disappearances — from the conflict.

The FAFG team applies techniques drawn from criminology, forensic anthropology, forensic archaeology, forensic genetics and social anthropology in a multidisciplinary human identification system.

Our investigators explain the process to families and family organisations using presentations. We speak to them as equals and give them information so they can make decisions about their participation. If we gain their trust they will share information with us about the victim, the event, and family genealogy. We also ask the relatives to provide DNA reference samples. “The FAFG’s multidisciplinary methods and approach are transferable to other post-conflict countries and situations with missing people, such as migration or natural disasters.”

Archaeologists then locate the graves using witness testimony or archaeological field surveys for depressions and other signs of graves. They then excavate, document, and exhume the remains. The grave is treated as a crime scene, so a forensic archaeologist will record all the details, such as any associated artifacts and other evidence to help determine how people were restrained and killed. This can include metal fragments (usually ballistics), rope, cords tying hands and/or feet and neck, blindfolds and gags.

Forensic anthropologists then analyse the skeletal remains to establish the biological profile of the victim. They determine characteristics such as age, height and sex based on features such as tooth development in children and differences between male and female pelvic girdle. This examination also reveals other individualising characteristics such as whether the person had previously broken bones or recovered from a disease. Forensic anthropologists also investigate the cause of death.

As part of this process a small piece of bone is cut from the left femur or tooth, as studies have shown that DNA is best protected in these dense areas of the human skeleton. The sample is then brought to our lab for analysis.

At the lab forensic geneticists compare the genetic profile of the victim obtained from the bone sample to the genetic profile of the families. Both are stored and continuously compared in our National Genetic Database of Relatives and Victims of Enforced Disappearance.

We use all of the information gathered throughout the entire process to ensure the victim’s identity is returned with dignity and certainty, thereby reconnecting families.

Setting the record straight

The FAFG’s evidence supports findings by Guatemala’s Historical Clarification Commission, that most victims of the civil war were Maya indigenous people living in the rural highlands, including women and children.

In Guatemala City the ideals and dreams of academics, religious leaders, student leaders, unions, and other politically motivated individuals frightened the regimes. The state responded to this fear disproportionately, killing and massacring 160,000 people and ‘disappearing’ 40,000 — rupturing Guatemala’s social fabric and forever changing the future and geography of the country.

The objective, rigorous investigations conducted by the FAFG clarify the truth so that history is properly acknowledged and recorded. The physical evidence proves what happened, supports the testimonies of families, and can be used in a court of law to hold the intellectual authors and perpetrators of the crimes responsible more than three decades since their crimes were committed.

Justice beyond Guatemala

Apart from empowering families in Guatemala, the forensic work has provided prosecutors with evidence in other parts of the world too. For example, in Bosnia FAFG personnel helped with the exhumation and the forensic investigation process that provided evidence in four genocide trials in The Hague. FAFG personnel investigated and contributed to these trials to gain justice for the families, just as we are doing in Guatemala.

As funding priorities shift according to the international development priorities that are in fashion, transitional justice (the process of coming to terms with human rights abuses) must not be pushed off the funding table — it is currently transitioning off the agendas of major donors. Civil society organisations like FAFG, that conduct forensic investigations into human rights violations, provide concrete evidence of the brutality of the past and have a huge impact on the families affected.

The FAFG’s multidisciplinary methods and approach are transferable to other post-conflict countries and situations with missing people, such as migration or natural disasters. Local capacity must be built according to local legislation, and it must involve passionate and dedicated individuals because searching for the missing is a long-term process. Once started, the process must be sustained. The families will expect it, they deserve it, and they can be empowered by it.

We must continue to listen to the demands of family members because their lives and the lives of those disappeared and killed matter. We cannot move forward as long as the disappeared and missing remain undignified and unidentified in clandestine graves throughout Guatemala and the rest of the world.

Wednesday 10 June 2015

http://www.scidev.net/global/conflict/opinion/forensic-science-search-disappeared-guatemala-conflict.html

continue reading

Search for Bodies in Capsized Eastern Star Ship Search Ends: Identification of Victims Begins, Seach for 8 Missing People Continues in River

China has confirmed that 434 bodies have been found and eight are still missing from the Eastern Star cruise ship, which capsized on the Yangtze River following a tornado on the night of June 1. Officials have began identifying the victims and releasing their bodies to their relatives.

According to local sources, DNA identification and forensic analysis is being used to help identify the victims in order to have their bodies returned to their families. Experts have already collected DNA samples from the recovered bodies.

They also finished collecting blood samples from the victims' relatives who helped in their identification. Presently, up to 281 victims have been identified through their DNA, according to CCTV. On Tuesday, encoffiners in Jianli County began to hold encoffination ceremonies for the 434 victims of the Yangtze River accident, according to Xinhua.

Min Jianxion, associate counsel for China's Ministry of Public Security, said authorities will use different methods to to identify victims from their DNA if their immediate relatives are not available.

According to CRI English, one option is to dispatch people to the residences of the victims in order to collect DNA samples from their immediate relatives and match them with the bodies found.

Experts consider DNA sampling to be one of the most reliable ways of identifing a person. China reportedly has 145 DNA testing specialists divided into 21 groups, who are responsible for collecting and matching victims' DNA. Once matches are confirmed, the personal belongings of the victims will also be returned to their relatives.

Meanwhile, insurance companies have initiated a "green channel" so that relatives of the victims of the capsized Easter Star can speed up their claims.

China Insurance Regulatory Commission deputy chairman, Huang Hong, said insurance companies have been told to make the claiming process simpler and faster. Under normal circumstances, the death certificate or certificate of permanent residence de-registration of the insured person must be presented to forward claims, however, this step has reportedly been ignored. All they have to do now is get the certificate from the government before they can avail claims.

Meanwhile, Global Times reported that the Eastern Star will be moved from the site in order to allow divers to continue their search for the missing victims. The ship will be tugged 10km upstream in Jianli County. The search for the remaining eight people would reportedly be extended to approximately 1300 km along the Yangtze River, where the Eastern Star ship capsized while going downstream to Shanghai's Wusong Estuary.

Wednesday 10 June 2015

http://www.chinatopix.com/articles/53162/20150610/china-confirms-434-dead-eight-missing-in-capsized-ship.htm

continue reading

Families of quake victims must wait two weeks for DNA confirmation

The families of two Singaporean victims killed in last week’s earthquake must wait another two weeks for DNA confirmation before they will be allowed to take the bodies home.

Despite positive identification by the police, Queen Elizabeth Hospital director Dr Heric Corray said that the hospital is running DNA tests based on samples and data received from the families for final confirmation before they can release the bodies.

“We feel that DNA testing is required to be able to ascertain the bodies. This will be the final confirmation,” he said to reporters here today.

Yesterday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said one victim’s family was in Kota Kinabalu to give a DNA sample while the other family had sent DNA data through e-mail and forensic experts are working round-the-clock to identify the remains.

Earlier today, Sabah police commissioner Datuk Jalaluddin Abdul Rahman said that body parts found on Mount Kinabalu were identified to be those of 13-year-old student Navdeep Singh Jaryal and 35-year-old teacher Mohammad Ghazi Mohamed from Tanjong Katong Primary School.

He said Malaysian police worked with its Singaporean counterpart to identify several body parts including arms, legs and torso picked up from the mountain summit using a disaster victim identification guide.

Meanwhile, Dr Corray said all the bodies have been claimed except for the family of the Japanese national who were likely to be arranging logistics to transport the body back following post mortem today.

“His body is still with us and we are just waiting for his family to take it. The last one was to the family of the Chinese national, who came here today,” he said.

The death toll from the magnitude 5.9 earthquake is now officially at 18, including six Malaysians, 10 Singaporeans and one Chinese and Japanese national each.

The deaths were caused by blunt trauma or injuries sustained from falling or being hit by a hard object, believed to be when the victim, who were climbing Mount Kinabalu, got hit by falling rubble from the quake.

The earthquake, some 16km northwest of the town of Ranau and in Kinabalu Park, is the largest to have hit Malaysia.

Wednesday 10 June 2015

http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/families-of-quake-victims-must-wait-two-weeks-for-dna-confirmation#

continue reading

Ghana: Govt directs DNA tests for unidentified flood/fire disaster victims

Government has authorised the testing of DNA samples on bodies of last Wednesday’s flood and fire disaster at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle in Accra.

Speaking at the one week memorial service for the victims held at the forecourt of the State House, President Mahama said several bodies have still not been identified and a DNA test will help family members claim their relatives for the necessary funeral rites.

He said, “In due course each of the names will be released to the public to ensure that these individuals will be remembered eternally. We are still in the process of identifying the dead. To that end government has given authorization for DNA tests to be conducted on the bodies from the disaster that have not yet been identified.”

He added that “This will allow families that are unsure of the fate of their members and who are still not accounted for to be able to bring DNA samples so confirmation can be made. With this official confirmation, claims can be quickly granted for the return of their loved ones’ remains.”

He said, "We will intensify our efforts to ease the suffering of those whose lives have been affected."

The President has also asked relatives to visit the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, 37 Military Hospital and the Police Hospital to seek guidance on how to go about this.

He also revealed that the official death toll from the twin disaster stands at 152 contrary to reports by sections of the media that over 200 hundred people perished in the disaster.

"Our search and rescue is over and our provisional death toll from the disaster is 152," he said.

Over 150 people lost their lives in a GOIL fuel station explosion at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle in Accra after long hours of a heavy downpour which also flooded the city.

The inter-faith, inter-denominational National Memorial Service will be held at the forecourt of the State House.

Wednesday 10 June 2015

http://pulse.com.gh/news/accra-twin-disaster-govt-directs-dna-test-for-unidentified-flood-fire-victims-id3849548.html

continue reading

17 killed in Peru bus fall

A truck carrying schoolchildren home from a parade has fallen into a ravine in Peru’s Andes Mountains, killing 17 people and injuring 33, authorities said.

Five of the injured are in “grave condition” after the accident near the remote community of Cahuac, 160 miles north east of the capital, Lima, said hospital director Rosa Pascual.

Fifteen of the dead were pupils aged nine to 15.

The truck was returning from a flag day parade when it fell about 1,000ft into the ravine, said Huanuco governor Ruben Alva.

School director Yonel Espinoza said the children decided to get in the back of the truck because they wanted to avoid the 90-minute walk from the parade site back to Cahuac, where they lived.

Peru’s transport system is plagued by old vehicles and poor roads, often through mountainous regions, contributing to a high accident rate. According to the transport minister, 3,110 people died in road accidents in Peru in 2013.

Tuesday 9 June 2015

http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/world/17-mostly-children-killed-in-peru-bus-fall-680765.html

continue reading

Rohingya expert: Dozens of corpses wash to shore in Myanmar

Dozens of corpses have washed to shore in Myanmar's western state of Rakhine in the last month, an advocacy group and villagers said Wednesday. Some were believed to be Rohingya Muslims trying to escape trafficking ships, while others were Bangladeshi.

Ye Htut, the presidential spokesman, and other officials were in meetings and could not immediately be reached for comment.

Rakhine State Minister Maung Maung Ohn had no word on the bodies but his office was checking into the report.

At least 47 bodies washed up on beaches and the mouths of rivers May 12-24, many so badly decomposed they were unrecognizable, said Chris Lewa of the Arakan Project, which has been monitoring activities in the isolated, northern tip of Rakhine for more than a decade.

Lewa — who provided a village-by-village breakdown and the dates each corpse was found — believes they drowned while trying to swim to shore.

Religious leader Ashu Dular and other residents in two villages contacted by The Associated Press by phone gave similar accounts, together tallying at least 18 corpses in a much less complete survey.

Myanmar has denied blame for a humanitarian crisis that has gripped Southeast Asia since early May, with more than 4,600 desperate and hungry boat people rescued in five countries after a massive, regional crackdown on human trafficking prompted some captains to abandon their human cargo at sea.

The United Nations says around half those brought to land have been Rohingya, fleeing violence and discrimination in their predominantly Buddhist country; the remainder, it says, are Bangladeshis, escaping poverty.

Myanmar, which denies the existence of the Rohingya, insists all those who have fled by boat in recent months were Bangladeshi. The government has gone to great lengths to make sure it is not disproven — at least not on its own soil.

Its Navy detained journalists, including the AP, over the weekend, erasing their camera memory cards, when they were trying to confirm the nationalities of 727 migrants on a boat hidden away for days near a remote island.

The ship was being towed Wednesday to northern Rakhine.

And late last month, Myanmar's government claimed a ship with more than 200 migrants — all Bangladeshis — had been recovered. But many more Rohingya were taken off the ship and brought to shore under the cover of darkness before they landed, said Araf, a 26-year-old woman, who was among those who said she was forced to disembark with her five children. Others in Sittwe, the state capital, had similar accounts.

For months, ships crammed with hundreds of migrants stayed in the Bay of Bengal, hoping to leave after the security crackdown eased. That didn't happen and conditions on board deteriorated, recent escapees complaining they were getting almost nothing to eat and were badly beaten if they made any noise. Some bought their freedom with help from family and friends, paying hundreds of dollars.

"In some cases, brokers started using fishing boats to bring a few people to shore," said Lewa. "But they were afraid to come too close and dropped them as near to the coast as they could."

Her team saw bodies on beaches and in the mouth of a tiny river along Rakhine's northern tip. Many were believed to be Bangladeshis, dropped off in Myanmar because they felt it was not safe to disembark in their own country during a high alert, she said.

Of the 47 bodies found, 15 corpses washed up in Alei Than Kyaw; 14 in Oo Daung River; 11 in Tha Pyay Taw; six in Tha Ya Kone and one in Myinn Hlut, the Arakan Project said.

Tuesday 9 June 2015

http://news.yahoo.com/rohingya-expert-dozens-corpses-wash-shore-myanmar-103910963.html?utm_content=buffer7fefb&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

continue reading

Wooden crosses in the Donetsk steppe: volunteers search for bodies of victims

In the midst of the Donetsk steppe on the mountain stands a wooden cross. Is similar, only much more put on the roads of Ukraine As amulets. On the cross hangs a soldier helmet plywood plate below the faded marker inscription: "Here lie four Ukrainian warriors, which finished it off, then set fire to their And dumped near the road. Buried fifteen. 09. 2014 ".

"Here the locals buried the soldiers of the Ukrainian army. Like the river found them, close to the road, after the battle, " says Victor Fly, the Deputy head of the Union of Afghanistan veterans of Lugansk region.

This organization together with the people's militia LNR AND Ukrainian volunteers of the humanitarian mission "Black Tulip" are engaged in the search, exhumation And transfer of the Kiev bodies of soldiers of the armed forces. Watching all the Commissioners of the OSCE.

"Here are four lies below another. Believe me, this is only a small proportion of all burials, which we send data. We have a lot of bodies are Not even Buried. Parts are collected in the fields, in the debaltseve area, for example", says Victor.

And this cross, And a helmet, And ubiquitous grasshoppers, And all This bathed in afternoon sun Prairie, As if merged. The peace And quiet." As if there is war, " I freeze.

"Don't relax - and chuckled low rebel in a dark green camouflage - you see at the bottom of the river?(Five hundred meters from us flows the Seversky Donets river). It is already the Ukrainian district, snipers, probably in the bushes sat down, holding us at gunpoint ".

"Oh, don't bother with us W OSCE! And volunteers over theirs. Won't shoot.

Tuesday 9 June 2015

http://news.rin.ru/eng/news///113649/

continue reading

Ops to exhume human trafficking mass graves ends today, 106 bodies found

Operations to exhume and remove the skeletal remains of victims of human trafficking that began on May 25 came to an end today.

Malaysian police said seven more shrouded bodies were found in seven graves at Bukit Genting Perah around 2.10pm and were brought down at 5.55pm today via Felcra Lubuk Sireh.

The latest findings bring the total number of bodies found to date to 106.

“With the latest discovery, operations to exhume the remains carried out by the police comprising forensic experts, the criminal investigation department and the General Operations Force came to an end today,” the police said in a statement here today.

Yesterday, 31 graves were discovered but only 30 skeletal remains were found (one grave was empty). The remains were removed from the site of the graves at Bukit Genting Perah via Felcra Lubuk Sireh.

On June 5, 14 shrouded skeletal remains were exhumed from 12 graves (two graves had remains of two people) in the forest reserve of Mata Air and yesterday 20 shrouded remains were found in 20 graves at the same site.

Prior to that 35 corpses and human skeletons were removed from Bukit Wang Burma.

Tuesday 9 June 2015

http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/ops-to-exhume-remains-of-human-trafficking-ends-today

continue reading

Fog disrupts the search operation at Mt Kinabalu

The operation to locate two Singaporeans listed as missing at Mt Kinabalu following Friday's earthquake that hit Ranau has to be temporarily put on hold due to foggy conditions.

Ranau Police Chief Deputy Superintendent DSP Farhan Lee Abdullah called off the mission at about 5.30pm on Monday.

He said DNA tests on body parts believed to belong to the two missing would be speeded up to bring some closure to the search and rescue effort.

"As of today, the number of deaths still remains at 16," he told reporters, here.

Farhan also said 12 bodies have so far been claimed by family members.

Sabah is also considering the possibility of only allowing children aged above 15 years to climb Mount Kinabalu in the wake of the death of six children in Friday's quake.

State education director Jame Alip said he had spoken about the matter to state Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Masidi Manjun, who is also the state executive councillor in charge of education.

Meantime Malaysian authorities have received DNA from families of the two Singaporeans missing. The DNA samples were taken from one of the families in Kota Kinabalu, and information on the other was received via email. Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said the process of DNA matching will take time. In the meantime, the search and rescue operation will continue, until the DNA matching is done and victims are identified.

On Sunday, Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun told reporters that 16 bodies had been recovered while two people were still classified as missing until post-mortem examinations were completed.

Those confirmed killed as a result of the 5.9-magnitude quake, that also rocked Southeast Asia's highest peak, were six Malaysians, seven Singaporeans, a Filipino, a Chinese national and a Japanese national. The two missing Singaporeans are a teacher and a pupil.

In Kota Kinabalu, several family members were seen waiting in a special room at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital where identification and post-mortem examinations were being conducted on the remains brought there.

Tuesday 9 June 2015

http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=100423

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/search-for-two-missing/1902186.html

continue reading

204 bodies from Eastern Star identified by DNA matching

Ten days have passed since a tornado upturned the Eastern Star cruise ship. With two more bodies found, eight passengers are still missing and the death toll has reached 434.

The search mission inside the ship has been completed. The focus of the search has now turned to the river bottom, especially among the huge rocks underwater. Police are also searching along the river's downstream.

More than 140 forensic experts are identifying the dead through DNA testing and arranging funeral services. Officials say more than 200 bodies have been identified by DNA matching. Authorities have started to hand over the bodies to their family members.



Video footage reveals the devastation inside the cruise ship in China which capsized in a freak storm on the Yangtze river last week. Rescue teams use circular saws to cut through muddy mangled metal in the hull as passengers' personal belongings lie strewn around. They are continuing with a detailed search of the ship.

Tuesday 9 June 2015

http://english.cntv.cn/2015/06/09/VIDE1433816761417446.shtml

http://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2015/jun/08/china-devastation-inside-capsized-yangtze-cruise-ship-video

continue reading

Remains of human limb found in Kedarnath two years after tragedy

Skeletal remains of a human foot were found lying under a heap of rubble in a structure close to Kedarnath temple nearly two years after a catastrophic deluge hit the shrine and other parts of Uttarakhand in June 2013 leaving a trail of death and devastation.

The remains of a human foot were sighted on Saturday as some locals were clearing debris from a structure in a narrow bylane about 50 metres from the Himalayan shrine, Rudraprayag Superintendent of Police Barinderjit Singh told.

The remains of the human limb were cremated after conducting necessary formalities like DNA sampling and panchnama the same day, he said.

However, the official said that there was nothing curious about skeletal remains still being found from the area despite several combing operations conducted there in search of bodies since the tragedy.

"The remains of over six hundred persons that have been cremated in Kedar valley so far were the ones found on the surface. "We are yet to remove 50-60 feet of rubble lying in the area surrounding the shrine and it wouldn't be surprising if we come upon something lying underneath," Singh said.

Entire floor of buildings is lying underneath the debris. Now that locals have been permitted to remove the debris from the structures, the possibility of something or the other being found cannot be ruled out, he said.

Monday 8 June 2015

http://www.ibnlive.com/news/india/remains-of-human-limb-found-in-kedarnath-two-years-after-tragedy-1003377.html

continue reading

23 bodies of Nepal quake victims still unidentified

Altogether 23 dead bodies still remain unclaimed at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH) in Maharajgunj awaiting identification even five weeks after the April 25 Great Earthquake.

Eight of the bodies are appendages and other body parts while the rest are whole body, according to the Nepal Police. Deputy Inspector General Kamal Singh Bam, spokesperson of Nepal Police, said all the bodies that could not be identified in the districts have been brought to the TUTH.

“Although we have put the details of the dead bodies that still remain unclaimed and unidentified on our website and trying to reach to as many people as possible, the effort seems to be of little or no avail,” said DIGBam. He said the Nepal Police has also formed a special team comprising of forensic experts to help with the body identification process.

Monday 8 June 2015

http://www.ekantipur.com/2015/06/08/capital/23-bodies-of-quake-victims-still-unidentified/406270.html

continue reading

55 more bodies pulled out in quake-hit Nepal

As many as 55 bodies, including of four foreigners, were recovered by the Nepal Army and villagers in a joint effort in Nepal's Langtang valley on Saturday and Sunday, police here said.

According to Deputy Superintendent of Police Pravin Pokhrel, the rescue teams of Nepal Army in coordination with local residents recovered 55 human skeletons from the village.

As many as 128 people were rescued from the village during the first phase of the rescue operation after the disaster.

Residents in Langtang area, in Rasuwa district and famous for trekking, said over 190 people were reported missing following the massive avalanche which swept away the entire village in the wake of the powerful April 25 quake that hit Rasuwa district.

Rasuwa was one of the worst hit districts in the quake, where 597 people died and 771 were injured. The worst-hit area was Langtang trekking area, one of the busiest and most admired trekking routes in Nepal.

Rasuwa district authorities have imposed a ban on travel to Langtang area, fearing landslide and avalanche. It was reopened on Wednesday following residents' demand to visit their habitation areas to search for their kin and other relatives.

The missing people include 10 Nepal Army personnel, according to Nepal Army's Laxman Thapa of Narayan Battalion posted in the area.

Officials said the search started late, as the area was cut off by road and the weather was inclement.

Search continues for scores of other villagers and tourists presumed to be missing in the region, according to the District Administration Office (DAO), Rasuwa.

A deadly avalanche set off by the devastating earthquake had wreaked havoc in the Langtang valley, a major tourist destination in the country, displacing the entire village and leaving hundreds killed.

After the killer avalanche, the local administration has shifted all 488 survivors and those affected to Kathmandu.

Residents said that along with 70 villagers, 40 tourist guides and porters, 190 people had been reported missing.

Monday 8 June 2015

http://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/55-more-bodies-pulled-out-in-quake-hit-nepal-115060700583_1.html

continue reading

Malaysia quake death toll reaches 16, search for bodies continues

Malaysian authorities said on Sunday 16 bodies had been recovered from the country's highest peak Mount Kinabalu after a magnitude 6 earthquake caused landslides and aftershocks.

The victims were 6 Malaysians, one from the Philippines, China and Japan, and 7 Singaporeans, including children who were on a school trekking trip.

Minister for Tourism, Culture and Environment Masidi Manjun told reporters in Kinabalu park that two people were listed as missing and that body parts had been found.

The search and rescue operations would continue on Monday, Manjun said.

Some climbers managed to make it down but more than 130 from 16 countries had been stranded on the mountain on Borneo island when the quake struck on Friday.

Rescue and recovery operations have been hampered by rubble and thick clouds which prevented helicopters from quickly retrieving the bodies.

"KM6.5 of the route was dubbed "river of stones" when earthquake struck early Friday which rendered the track impassable, trapping climbers," Manjun said on Twitter.

In Singapore, the prime minister's office said the children caught in the quake were from Tanjong Katong primary school.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong declared June 8 a day of national mourning.

"State flags on all government buildings will be flown at half-mast," the prime minister said in a Facebook posting.

Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said the country needed its own earthquake monitoring centre.

"In the latest incident, no one issued any warning. It may happen again and we do not have a department responsible to monitor impending disasters here," state news agency Bernama quoted him as saying at the Kinabalu site on Sunday.

The US Geological Survey said the epicentre of the quake was about 54 km (33 miles) from the state capital of Kota Kinabalu.

Monday 8 June 2015

http://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-malaysia-quake-death-toll-reaches-16-search-for-bodies-continues-2093321

continue reading

China completes DNA collection to identify ship dead

China has completed the DNA collection needed to identify the 432 bodies recovered so far from last week's deadly Yangtze boat disaster.

The Eastern Star, mostly carrying elderly tourists, capsized on 1 June near Jianli in Hubei province.

Just 14 of the 456 passengers and crew are known to have survived.

A search is continuing for eight people who remain missing. Authorities have extended the search area to 1,000km (621 miles) downriver. The sinking was the worst maritime disaster China has seen in decades.

DNA matching

Authorities are now planning to collect DNA from family members for matching purposes.

A spokesman for China's public security ministry, Min Jianxiong, told reporters that they expect to finish matching the DNA within the next few days, and added that a number of victims had already been identified.

Meanwhile authorities have begun cremating victims so that they can return their ashes to their families for burial, as per Chinese custom.

The BBC's Celia Hatton in Beijing says activity has moved from the hollow shell of the capsized cruise ship to a nearby morgue.

Relatives were seen weeping as they arrived at the morgue in Jianli to have one last look at their loved ones before cremation, AP reported.

On Sunday - a week after the disaster took place - many congregated by the shore of the Yangtze to hold mourning ceremonies.

Meanwhile new pictures emerged of the interior of the Eastern Star - known as Dongfangzhixing in Chinese - which was pulled upright on Friday for search operations over the weekend.

Searchers said rooms were "severely ruined" and strewn with debris.

The top floor was crushed and rescuers had to break into rooms using chainsaws, according to Reuters news agency.

Our correspondent says questions still linger as to how the massive ship sank in just a few minutes, without anyone issuing a distress call.

Some in the Chinese state media argue that modifications to the ship's interior made it more difficult for those on board to escape in an emergency.

Others point to the possibility of human error and have questioned the decision to continue sailing in rough weather.

The Chinese authorities arrested the ship's captain and chief engineer, who were among the survivors, but they have not announced plans for a criminal inquiry into the disaster.

The cause of the sinking is not yet known, but survivors have spoken of an intense storm which flipped the boat over in minutes.

Monday 8 June 2015

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-33044963

continue reading

Nepal says civilians were on crashed US copter, toll now 13

A U.S. military helicopter that crashed in Nepal last month on an earthquake relief mission was carrying five more passengers than first thought, raising the death toll to 13, Nepal's army said Friday.

Authorities initially said six U.S. Marines and two Nepalese soldiers were killed.

According to Army Spokesperson Brigadier General Jadish Chandra Pokharel, the confirmation was made after matching the DNA samples of the deceased family with the samples of their family members. The Army had collected the DNA samples of the relatives of the missing locals last week. The search for the five people was started only after they could not be found at any hospital in Kathmandu even 13 days after they were airlifted from the district. “We are preparing to hand over the bodies to the family members,” Pokhrel said. The body of Lieutenant Tapendra Rawal was handed over to his family in Dailekh where his last rites were performed last week. The body of Warrant Officer Basant Bahadur Titara will also been handed over to his family soon, according to the Army. The US Embassy in Nepal said that Nepali and US armies have been coordinating on the identification of the remains of the five civilians who lost their lives in the crash. “We offer heartfelt condolences to all those who lost their lives in this tragic accident,” said Susan Parker-Jones, director of Public Affairs at the Embassy. The UH-1 "Huey" helicopter crashed May 12 in the northeastern mountains, and the wreckage was found after days of intense searching. The first three charred bodies were retrieved by Nepalese and U.S. military teams, and the rest were found a day later.

The U.S. relief mission was deployed after a magnitude-7.8 earthquake hit Nepal on April 25. A magnitude-7.3 quake struck on May 12 and hours later the helicopter crashed.

Four of the Marines were part of the Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 469 of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing based at Camp Pendleton near San Diego, California. Two other Marines were combat cameramen based in Japan.

The cause of the crash has not been determined. U.S. military officials have said that an Indian helicopter in the air nearby heard radio chatter from the Huey about a possible fuel problem.

Earlier this week, a private helicopter chartered by Doctors Without Borders crashed after hitting power cables, killing all four people on board. Three victims were Nepalese and the other was a Dutch woman.

The government and aid agencies have used helicopters to carry relief materials to mountainous regions where earthquake damage or the lack of existing roads has made delivery of aid all but impossible.

The two earthquakes have killed more than 8,700 people, injured thousands and destroyed many buildings. Saturday 6 June 2015

http://www.aol.com/article/2015/06/05/nepal-says-civilians-were-on-crashed-us-copter-toll-now-13/21191888/

continue reading

11 dead, 8 missing on Malaysian peak after earthquake of 6.0 magnitude

The strong earthquake that jolted Malaysia's Mount Kinabalu left at least 11 people dead and another eight missing on Southeast Asia's highest peak, a government official said on Saturday.

"As at noon time, 11 bodies have been recovered (2 identified) and eight people are still missing," Masidi Manjun, the tourism minister for the Malaysian state of Sabah on Borneo island, said on his Twitter feed.

The 6.0-magnitude quake struck near the picturesque mountain, a popular tourist destination, on Friday, sending landslides and huge granite boulders tumbling down from the 4,095-metre peak's wide, jagged crown.

The quake was centered northwest of Ranau district in Sabah state on Borneo at a depth of 54 kilometers (34 miles), Malaysia's meteorological department said.

Local media said rescuers recovered two bodies from 4,095-meter Mount Kinabalu believed to be of a local guide and a 12-year-old female Singaporean student.

Sabah police chief Jalaluddin Abdul Rahman confirmed two fatalities but couldn't give further details. Sabah Parks director Jamili Nais said several injured climbers had been brought down the mountain.

Most of the 137 stranded people were cautiously trying to descend with the help of park rangers and guides, and some were expected to reach the base camp by early Saturday, he said. Some were foreigners, but it wasn't clear how many.

The climbing route was apparently blocked or made dangerous by rocks and boulders loosened by the quake and small aftershocks, Jamili said.

Helicopters were unable to land because of bad weather and the high altitude, he said. The quake damaged roads and buildings, including schools and a hospital on Sabah's west coast.

Saturday 6 June 2015

http://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-11-dead-8-missing-on-malaysian-peak-after-earthquake-of-60-magnitude-2092875

continue reading

Ghana: 28 days to claim bodies of floods, GOIL fire victims

Families of persons who died as a result of last Wednesday’s flood and the fire at the GOIL fuel station have up to July 2, 2015 to claim the bodies.

According to the Manager of the Korle-Bu Mortuary Department, Mr George Denkyi, the law permitted unidentified bodies to be buried within 28 days of being received at the morgue.

In effect, bodies at other public health facilities will be affected by this ultimatum.

He explained that a mass burial would be held for the unclaimed bodies after July 3, 2015.

“Postmortem examination will be performed on the bodies to find the cause of death. The unclaimed ones would then be buried in a mass grave after the July 2 deadline,” Mr Denkyi told the Daily Graphic in Accra yesterday.

Meanwhile, the remains of 64 people who died as a result of floods and the fire outbreak at a GOIL fuel station at Kwame Nkrumah Circle in Accra have been identified.

More than 150 people have been killed by the floods and fire that occurred on Wednesday, June 3, 2015 in some parts of Accra.

The 37 Military Hospital has received 65 victims and out of that number, 32 have been identified, but two are charred beyond recognition. Four persons are currently receiving treatment at the Intensive Care Unit (IOU).

“There are 65 bodies in our morgue right now. They are 22 females and 43 males while 22 people are currently on admission. A male child is among those admitted.

Sources at the various health centres disclosed these figures to the Daily Graphic in Accra and said that the public was welcome to identify either the deceased or injured persons.

Fifty-seven bodies are in the Police Hospital morgue. Families have managed to identify 30 bodies at the time of going to press yesterday. The Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital received 11 bodies. Six of the deaths were flood-related.

The heavy downpour recorded in some parts of Accra left in its wake death and misery as some persons are still unaccounted for.

Scores of family members have been trooping to various health centres in search of their missing relatives.

At the time of going to press yesterday, devastated Ghanaians were moving from one hospital to another in search of either bodies or family members receiving treatment.

Some found their relatives alive and badly injured, while others have either managed to identify their dead relatives or could not identify them due to the devastating effects of the fire outbreak on their bodies.

There was a sad spectacle at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra yesterday as scores of people were in misery as a result of their inability to locate their missing relatives.

Hospital authorities have made arrangements for the general public to view and identify deceased persons and those on admission.

Troubled family members who spoke to the Daily Graphic indicated they had been to the major hospitals in Accra but were yet to locate their missing relatives.

Saturday 6 June 2015

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=361225

continue reading