Munich air disaster anniversary

Fifty-seven years ago today, on Feb 6 1958, the second and greatest of three Manchester United teams built by Matt Busby were flying home from their 3-3 draw with Red Star Belgrade in the European Cup quarter-final second leg, a result that out them through to the semi-final with a 5-4 aggregate victory.

They had stopped over to refuel in Munich and made two attempts to take off that were abandoned due to problems with the left engine. Despite snowfall, the captain decided to make a third attempt, hit slush on the runway and the plane crashed through a fence and hit a house.

It was the darkest day in the club’s history and in the 73 years of the English professional game. Seven Manchester United players were killed at the scene – Roger Byrne, Eddie Colman, Mark Jones, Billy Whelan, David Pegg, Geoff Bent and Tommy Taylor while the magnificent Duncan Edwards died of his injuries 15 days later.

Three members of the United staff – Walter Crickmer, Tom Curry and Bert Whalley were mortally wounded and eight journalists travelling with the team – Henry Rose, Donny Davies, Tom Jackson, Archie Ledbrooke, Eric Thompson, George Follows, Alf Clarke and the former England and Manchester City goalkeeper turned News of the World correspondent Frank Swift – lost their lives along with the Manchester United fan Willie Satinoff, travel agent Bela Miklos and two members of the aircraft’s crew, Ken Rayment and Tom Cable. In addition two players, Jackie Blanchflower and Johnny Berry, were so badly injured they never played again.

The outpouring of grief in a far less tribal age was universal. Thousands of people attended memorials to the Busby Babes, youthful, vibrant, fearless players who appeared both to have the world at their feet and their feet on the ground.

They had won the league in 1956 and 1957 by 11 and eight points respectively in the era of two points for a win, playing a brand of athletic, attacking football that remains an imperishable memory for all who were fortunate enough to see a team bristling with vitality and potential.

Footage of the incomparably powerful Edwards, the swerving and swivelling runs of Eddie ‘Snakehips’ Colman, the lethal finishing of Tommy Taylor and the quick, graceful captain Roger Byrne still emphasises the magnitude of the loss.

Jimmy Murphy, the man who nurtured them for Busby, summed up the duty of the survivors best: "I know those lads better than anyone. I found them. I nurtured them. I was there with them every morning, noon and night, piss and rain and gales and snow. They let me mould their lives from the ground up. They repaid me, they repaid this club with their skill, their passion and now their lives.

It's not about honouring their memory. It's about showing who we are to the world. Showing we'll not be bowed by tragedy. Because how we are in the future will be founded on how we behave today."

Manchester United survived, eventually recovered and prospered but there remains a sorrow at the heart of the club that drives those who respect it and the game to pay tribute to the eternally poignant memory of those beloved lost lads.

Louis van Gaal has paid a poignant tribute to those lost in the Munich air crash, on the 57th anniversary of that fateful day in 1958.

He laid a wreath at the Munich air disaster memorial to remember the 23 people killed in the tragic crash.

The Manchester United manager joined hundreds of fans who attended an annual memorial service at Old Trafford on Friday and laid a wreath beneath the commemorative plaque. During his weekly press conference, van Gaal then quoted lyrics from The Pride of Football, one of two songs that were sung at the emotional gathering.

"I represent the club nowadays as a manager and I represent my group of players," the boss explained to reporters. "There were a lot of players who had given a lot of joy to the people at that time [in 1958]. They have played a big part in the history of this club and I think we have to remember that always.

Friday 6 February 2015

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/manchester-united/11394795/Manchester-United-Munich-Air-Disaster-anniversary-emphasises-the-magnitude-of-footballs-loss.html

http://www.manutd.com/en/News-And-Features/Football-News/2015/Feb/louis-van-gaal-pays-respect-to-victims-of-munich-air-crash.aspx

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More MH17 remains and wreckage to return to Netherlands on Saturday

A Dutch military transport aircraft will arrive on Saturday at the Eindhoven Airbase with the victim remains and wreckage from the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 disaster. The plane is scheduled to land at 4 p.m., the government stated on Thursday.

The same ceremony will take place as with the arrival of the previous victims, and some surviving family members are expected to attend. After the somber ceremony, the remains will be transported under a police and Marechaussee military police escort to the Corporal Oudheusden Barracks in Hilversum.

Defence Minister Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert and Minister of Interior Ronald Plasterk will attend to the ceremony on behalf of the Dutch cabinet. Representatives from both houses of parliament, and the affected countries will be present as well.

The Malaysia Airlines flight took off from Schiphol airport in Amsterdam on July 17, 2014, but was apparently shot down over eastern Ukraine while flying to Kuala Lumpur. All 298 people onboard were killed.

Friday 6 February 2015

http://www.nltimes.nl/2015/02/05/remains-wreckage-mh17-returns-nl-saturday/

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Kathore Link Road accident: Twenty more bodies identified

The process of identifying the people who died in the Kathore Link Road accident on January 11 is nearly complete, with only six unidentified bodies left at the Edhi morgue.

Out of the 26 bodies still at the morgue, 18 were handed over to the families of the deceased on Thursday morning. “Two more bodies have also been identified but their families have not yet received them,” said the morgue in-charge.

A Shikarpur-bound bus had caught fire after colliding with an oil tanker, claiming the lives of 62 passengers. Only one body could be identified on the day.

Abdul Hafeez Lund received the bodies of three family members on Thursday. He buried them in Data Nagar, Steel Town, near the graves of five others who died in the same accident. He earlier received two bodies on January 20 and three other on January 28.

“They were all going to Ghotki to attend a wedding,” he said. “We lost eight family members that day but the government has not offered us any help; the provincial authorities, including the police, did not even help us take the bodies home.” He also complained that there was no mechanism in place to help the families to take the bodies without hassle.

He said that both the men were factory workers who had lost their jobs after the incident. “They are in shock,” he explained. “They were awaiting the identification of their loved ones and the process is finally over now.”

Friday 6 February 2015

http://tribune.com.pk/story/833742/kathore-link-road-accident-twenty-more-bodies-identified/

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8 still missing from Taiwan plane crash

Rescue workers are trying to find eight people still missing from the TransAsia Airways plane that crashed into a river in Taiwan on Wednesday, amid concerns that some of them might have been swept away by currents.

Thirty-five people have been confirmed dead from the crash of TransAsia Airways Flight GE235, and 15 people survived, many of them with injuries, according to Taiwan's official news agency, CNA. Two people on the ground were also hurt.

Searchers continued to recover bodies of victims Friday, CNA reported, citing Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration. Pieces of wreckage from the ATR 72 twin-engine turboprop aircraft have been hauled out of the Keelung River in Taipei, the Taiwanese capital.

Rescuers fear those people still unaccounted for may have drifted downstream toward the larger Tamsui River. Divers have put up a net about 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the crash site to try to catch the missing bodies, authorities said.

The pilot of the crashed TransAsia plane was still clutching the aircraft's joystick when his body was found in the cockpit, after he battled to avoid populated areas, it was revealed today, as the bodies of four more victims were found.

The remains were discovered this morning as the search area was extended along the Keelung River. Eight people are still missing.

Pilot Liao Chien-tsung, 41, has been hailed as a hero for apparently making a last-ditch attempt to steer the turboprop plane away from built-up areas during its steep descent, avoiding more deaths and damage.

Thirty-five people are now known to have died in Wednesday's crash after a TransAsia Airways plane clipped a bridge shortly after take-off from the city's domestic airport and plunged into the river.

Liao's body was found in the cockpit still holding the joystick with both hands, and with his legs badly fractured, the Taipei-based China Times newspaper said.

“He struggled to hold onto the joystick till the last moment before the plane plunged into the river in an attempt to control its direction and to reduce casualties,” the report said, citing unnamed prosecutors investigating the case.

Among the bodies found this morning were those of two boys who were still strapped into their seats. They were discovered in the river about 50 metres from the crash site.

The body of an elderly woman was found about 100 metres downstream from the scene of the accident, while the remains of a middle-aged man were discovered nearby, the Central News Agency reported.

Three helicopters started patrolling further along the Keelung River today amid fears that some of the missing may have been washed further downstream towards the larger Tamsui River.

A total of 300 rescuers, including 50 divers, are searching six different stretches of water in cases survivors may be trapped in mudflats in bends in the river, a fire brigade spokesman told local media.

The Coast Guard will also carry out search operations at the mouth of the Tamsui River where it meets the sea.

Relatives of victims of the crash from mainland China visited the scene of the disaster on Friday morning, Radio Taiwan International reported.

Many of the victims were from Xiamen in Fujian province and officials from the city have also arrived in Taipei.

Staff from Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council were due to meet representatives from TransAsia Airways and the Civil Aeronautics Administration this morning and may release details of their findings into the crash later today.

An aviation official also confirmed on Thursday the authenticity of a recording of one of the pilots of the stricken aircraft saying "Mayday, mayday, engine flameout" moments before it banked sharply and crashed.

The aircraft - carrying 53 passengers, including four children, and five crew members - was seen to lurch between buildings, then clip the bridge with one of its wings before crashing upside down in the shallow river at about 10.55am on Wednesday, shortly after taking off from Taipei's Songshan International Airport.

Video images of the plane's final moments in the air captured on car dashboard cameras appear to show the left engine's propeller at standstill as the aircraft turned sharply over Taipei, with its wings going vertical and clipping a highway bridge before plunging into the Keelung River.

The authorities have also banned the airline from applying for new routes for one year in the wake of the latest incident.

Wednesday’s accident, which occurred on a domestic flight to the island of Kinmen, was the second fatal crash for TransAsia after a July disaster that left 48 people dead.

“We have imposed a one-year ban on TransAsia from applying for new routes as a penalty,” said Civil Aeronautics Administration director Lin Tyh-ming.

Taiwanese media said the authorities were looking into allegations against the airline including staff shortages and insufficient training which could have affected safety standards.

“There is a manpower shortage of pilots ...TransAsia had to recruit pilots with less experience from other companies after more than 20 of it pilots went to two newer airlines,” the Apple Daily newspaper reported, citing unnamed sources.

Calls were also mounting from politicians for TransAsia to suspend its operations.

“This is a serious issue that two crashes occurred in just seven months. The company must immediately adopt an in-depth review of its management regarding problems such as workload and salaries,” lawmaker Lin Teh-fu of the ruling Kuomintang party told the Agence France-Presse news agency.

Friday 6 February 2015

http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1704409/four-more-bodies-taiwan-plane-crash-retrieved-pilot-was-found-cockpit

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Texas State team works to ID migrant remains

More than 120 bodies of people who died while trying to cross the border were buried in Brooks County, Texas in 2012, enough to full a Boeing 737 aircraft.

Many of their identities remain a mystery, but Dr. Kate Spradley at Texas State hopes to help change that. The work she and her students are doing is referred to as 'Operation Identification.'

"No one is treating it like a mass disaster," said Spradley, who is an associate professor of forensic anthropology at Texas State.

Working with a Baylor University professor to exhume the bodies, the remains of 80 people were then transported to Texas State's Freeman Ranch.

Because the bodies were immediately buried upon discovery by Brooks County authorities, and therefore at various stages of decomposition, they are no longer eligible for autopsy said Spradley.

"If the remains were not brought here, these individuals would have no chance at identification because they were buried immediately. It's as if their identities were wiped off the face of this earth," she said.

Spradley and her team use the skeletal remains try and identify where the person came from before they died crossing the Texas-Mexico border. She says evidence suggests many of the eighty bodies they currently have are from Central America.

Texas State anthropology students aid in the work, scrubbing bones clean of flesh and tissue before examination.

Recent Texas State graduate Hailey Duecker measured a skull Thursday afternoon. She says that sort of information can help reveal the person's origin.

"Everybody deserves to be identified," said Duecker.

The bones are a big part of this process, but sometimes, what cracks the case are the clothes. All clothing and personal items found on the bodies are kept in a freezer until they can be washed and documented. They are then uploaded to a database. The hope is that families of missing people can access the public database and recognize items belonging to loved ones.

So far, the group has had two successful identifications. In one case, they discovered an identification card on a body while processing the personal items. In another, Spradley solved the mystery herself.

The group works closely with several human rights groups. Because the families of missing persons are not U.S. citizens, they can't file missing persons reports when their family members go missing in the U.S., explained Spradley.

Human rights organizations sometimes fill that gap, said Spradley, by taking and filing missing persons reports.

Spradley was reviewing one when a description of a brown plaid shirt jogged her memory. It turned out to be the same brown plaid shirt her students had just finished washing, and the young man's remains were able to be returned to his family.

"They no longer have to continue to wonder what happened to their loved one," Spradley said.

Friday 6 February 2015

http://www.kvue.com/story/news/local/2015/02/05/team-works-to-id-migrant-remains/22953961/

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Searching for Turkey's missing children

Where is Yakup? It’s been 10 minutes since dinner has started at grandpa’s home in a remote village of eastern Turkey. And Yakup has disappeared. No one is that concerned. It is not unusual for a three-year-old to wander off…

But, 25 years later, his father is still looking for him.

Sakip Ergun, 57, was not present when his son first went missing.

"I had sent my wife with my three children to grandpa's, who lives in our village,” he says.

He has "done everything" to find his son, but nothing has brought him back.

There have been no clues on his whereabouts since he disappeared in a village of almost 500 people in the Turkish province, Erzurum. "I have no foes, thank God," the father says.

"We went on many TV broadcasts," said Sakip. He even met then-president Suleyman Demirel.

But back then, Turkey had not have a police force department for missing people until the relentless cries and demands of distraught families bore fruit.

As the question -- Where is Yakup ? -- lingers, Sakip has no choice but to find comfort in the fact that his numerous efforts to find his son have served to help others track down their loved ones.

Police forces look for nearly 4,000 missing children on average every month in Turkey.

The Turkish national police launched a special team in 2013 of 5,000 experts and police to ramp up searches for missing persons, and found more than 2,600 people in four months, including a few who were missing for more than 20 years.

For a long time, Sakip searched for his son, who would now be 29, with a childhood photo. However, this has changed as Turkish police teams use photo-aging techniques to create an illustration of missing children's potentıal adult faces.

But despite the improvements in search techniques for missing children in Turkey, still thousands -- some of which are not children anymore -- remain missing, according to reports.

More than 445,000 missing people have been found between 1995 and 2014, according to the Department of Smuggling, Intelligence, Operations and Information Gathering.

Some 7,070 children, though, are still missing according to a November 2014 department report.

While the Ergun family does not know what happened to Yakup, most cases involving missing children are the result of problems within families or related to drug abuse.

The head of the Association of Families Whose Relatives Went Missing, Zafer Ozbilici, said that socioeconomic issues were the main reason behind missing children cases.

"In general, those children are repressed and from families in financial difficulties or with domestic issues," said Ozbilici, who created the association, after his brother went missing in 1992.

The association has launched various campaigns such as a bus touring Turkey, or grocery bags showcasing pictures of missing children.

It must be noted that almost all children who go missing are brought back to their families within 30 days.

According to the police department report, only one in 1,000 of the missing childrencould not be found within the six months following the disappearance.

Still, Ozbilici warns, it is very dangerous for a child to spend more than 24 hours outside of his home, as it is possible for him to be either a victim or perpetrator of a crime.

He urges for more cooperation among institutions, such as security forces or the family ministry, to accelerate searches.

"An officer is stalled with official paperwork in the time that he could spend on finding a missing child," he complains, citing as an efficient solution the alarm system for missing people in the U.S. called AMBER.

AMBER alert is an emergency code interconnecting the police force with media outlets and other broadcasting means to warn the public to be on the lookout for a certain missing person.

Many families have spent all they have to search for their missing child, says Ozbilici.

"They lose their wealth and savings," says Ozbilici.

Sakip Ergun has spent loads of money during these 25 long years. He once had 10,000 posters and fliers with the picture of his son printed on them.

"We are still waiting as we are believers. You cannot abandon hope from God's mercy," he says.

"People can accept death and live with it. This is much harder than death as you do not know what to accept and you get exhausted after continuous waiting and you keep thinking about your child's whereabouts," says Ozbilici.

That's what Sakip has been living through for a quarter of a century.

And the question remains: Where's Yakup?

Thursday 5 February 2015

http://www.worldbulletin.net/news/154332/searching-for-turkeys-missing-children

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International Red Cross seeks to find fate of 4,500 who went missing during Karabakh War

On 3 February, 2015 First Deputy Minister of Defence of the Republic of Armenia David Tonoyan hosted the Head of the Delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross to Armenia Sarah Epprecht.

During the meeting the parties discussed possible ways of implementation of agreements to exchange data on missing persons.

The First Deputy Minister of Defense underlined that the Armenian side has been successfully cooperating with the ICRC since 1992 and fully intends to carry on this collaboration.

The Head of the ICRC delegation to Armenia noted, on her part, that one of the priorities of the ICRC as an impartial, neutral, and independent organization is to reveal the fate of approximately 4500 people who went missing in the wake of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Davit Tonoyan reported that within the scope of its authority, the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Armenia stands ready to cooperate with the Azerbaijani side under the aegis of the ICRC in the exchange of data of missing people which will be a step in implementation of norms of international humanitarian law.

Thursday 5 February 2015

http://hetq.am/eng/news/58396/international-red-crossseeks-to-find-fate-of-4500who-went-missing-during-karabakh-war.html

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NamUs: How to Use the National System to Find Missing and Unidentified Persons

When a family member or loved one goes missing, people file a police report, or hire private investigators. In addition to these resources, there is also the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs).

NamUs, a site run by the Department of Justice, is a database of missing and unidentified persons. The site can be used for online searches, adding up-to-date facts and information to a case, and even volunteering to help with investigations.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) is a powerful, free tool to assist law enforcement officers, medical examiners, coroners, allied criminal justice professionals, and the family members of missing persons in resolving these cold cases. NamUs combines online database technology with forensic and analytical resources to solve long-term missing and unidentified person cases.

NamUs resources also include a team of expert Regional System Administrators (RSAs) who assist users with case management and biometric support services. The online databases contain detailed case information that allows for searching using a wide variety of identifiers, such as physical features, dental records and tattoos, while protecting sensitive case data which is restricted and only viewable by medical examiners, coroners, law enforcement, clearinghouse personnel, and other allied forensic specialists.

NamUs also offers free forensics services like DNA tests, which can be used to help investigators identify missing or unidentified people.

The missing persons database

This system provides quick and advanced search options just by inputting basic information such as first and last name, gender, and the state in which the missing person was last seen.

To create a missing person file, youmust register and enter the information requested by the system. Once access is given, you can create a file, modify the information, and share any new details with authorities handling the case.

The unidentified and unclaimed persons database

Sometimes police officers recover a body of someone who died and could not be identified, or they may be able to identify a body, but it remains unclaimed. In both cases, the coroners are the ones responsible for opening a file in the NamUs system and modifying any new information.

To do a quick or advanced search for an unidentified person, you must enter the person's information in the corresponding boxes.

If you are searching for an unclaimed person, you can write the person's name and birth date in the search area. Depending on the search results, you can contact the person in charge of the case to claim the body.

Contacting NamUs

Every missing person fact sheet has contact information for the person or agency handling the case.

Users with general questions about the system can email NamUs at questions@findthemissing.org

Thursday 5 February 2015

http://www.itbusinessnet.com/article/How-to-Use-the-National-System-to-Find-Missing-and-Unidentified-Persons-3732852

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Rescuers still hope to find 12 missing from Taiwan plane

Taiwanese rescue officials refused to give up hope of finding 12 people still missing on Thursday more than 24 hours after a TransAsia Airways (6702.TW) plane crashed into a Taipei river, killing at least 31.

TransAsia Flight GE235, carrying 58 passengers and crew, lurched between buildings, clipped a taxi and an overpass with one of its wings and crashed upside down into shallow water shortly after take-off from a downtown Taipei airport on Wednesday.

"We have not found survivors or bodies of the 12 missing, but we will not give up. We'll continue to search," said Yeh Chun-hsing, an official with Taipei's fire department.

Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) said there were 15 known survivors. Sixteen of those killed were from among a group of 31 Chinese tourists, most from the southeastern city of Xiamen, it said. Three Chinese passengers were rescued.

The pilot and co-pilot of the almost-new turboprop ATR 72-600 were among those killed, the CAA said. TransAsia identified the pilot as 42-year-old Liao Chien-tsung.

Dramatic pictures captured by a passing motorist showed the plane careening over an overpass, its nose up as its port-side wing struck the taxi and roadway just metres from passing cars.

Rescuers could be seen pulling luggage from an open plane door to clear the fuselage. Ten inflatable dinghies also searched for the missing.

As a drizzle fell around nightfall, military crews took portable bridges to the scene, where rescue workers were building docks for easier access to the wreckage. About 300 rescue personnel and members of the media stood along the banks of the narrow river.

Taiwanese media reported that it appeared Liao had fought desperately to steer his stricken aircraft between apartment blocks and commercial buildings close to Taipei's Songshan airport before crashing into the river.

The head of Taiwan's CAA, Lin Tyh-ming, has said Liao had 4,916 flying hours under his belt and the co-pilot 6,922 hours.

Taiwanese media reported that Liao, the son of street vendors, passed exams to join the air force. He later flew for China Airlines (2610.TW), Taiwan's main carrier, before joining TransAsia.

The CAA, Taiwan's aviation regulator, ordered TransAsia and Uni Air, a subsidiary of EVA Airways Corp (2618.TW), to conduct engine and fuel system checks on the remaining 22 ATR aircraft they still operate.

TransAsia's shares closed down 6.9 percent on Wednesday, its biggest percentage decline since late 2011, and were down another 4 percent on Thursday. The crash was the latest in a string of aviation disasters in Asia in the past 12 months and TransAsia's second in the past seven months.

Macau's Civil Aviation Authority said the engines of the plane had been replaced at Macau Airport on April 19 last year, during its delivery flight, "due to engine-related technical issues".

It said the engines were replaced by TransAsia engineers and the plane left Macau airport two days later.

Lin from Taiwan's CAA said the aircraft last underwent maintenance on Jan. 26.

The plane was powered by two Pratt & Whitney PW127M engines. Pratt & Whitney is part of United Technologies (UTX.N).

The last communication from one of the pilots was "Mayday engine flameout", according to an air traffic control recording on liveatc.net.

A flameout can occur when the fuel supply to an engine is interrupted or when there is faulty combustion, but twin-engined aircraft can usually keep flying with one engine.

Taiwan officials said on Wednesday the plane's black box data recorder had been recovered but no information from it had been made available yet.

TransAsia official said the airline would give the families of those killed T$1.2 million (£25,127) for funeral expenses and T$200,000 to each of the injured. Two people on the ground were also injured, it said.

The plane was bound for the Taiwan island of Kinmen, not far from Xiamen. TransAsia said it would fly members of the Chinese passengers' families to Taiwan on Wednesday.

Thursday 5 February 2015

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/02/05/uk-taiwan-airplane-idUKKBN0L808120150205

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AirAsia flight QZ8501: 91 victims recovered, 64 identified

The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) has recovered 91 bodies of the total 162 passengers on board AirAsia flight QZ8501, which crashed last December.

The National Police’s Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team had identified 64 of the 91 bodies as of Wednesday, Antara news agency reported.

Thirteen bodies are still being identified by the DVI team, while another 14 bodies are expected to arrive at Bhayangkara Police Hospital in Surabaya, East Java.

The search efforts are ongoing in the Java Sea and Karimata Strait, where the aircraft - which was en route from Surabaya to Singapore - crashed on Dec. 28.

On Tuesday, divers from the search and rescue team recovered six bodies from the Java Sea.

Another team is operating in Makassar Strait, searching for more bodies and debris in Mamuju waters, West Sulawesi. The search area was extended to the waters around the Pinrang and Selayar islands in South Sulawesi, where local fishermen recently found bodies.

Of the 162 victims, there were 155 Indonesians, three South Koreans, a French, a British, a Singaporean and a Malaysian.

Thursday 5 February 2015

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/05/basarnas-recovers-91-victims-airasia-crash.html

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AirAsia flight QZ8501: Search expands to Central Sulawesi

The search for victims and wreckage of AirAsia flight QZ8501, which crashed in the Karimata Strait, Central Kalimantan, has been expanded to the Makassar Strait in Donggala regency, Central Sulawesi.

The move came following the finding by a local fisherman in Toale subdistrict, Donggala, of parts of an overhead cabin locker suspected to be from the plane.

National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) Palu branch operational section head George LM Randang said the find would be the basis for a new search.

“As the stream continues to move to the north, the search will most likely expand as far as the Central Sulawesi region,” George said.

According to him, Basarnas Palu had set up a coordination post in the Pasangkayu region, West Sulawesi, to support the team that was currently sweeping Majene waters with the Makassar search and rescue team.

Separately, a number of fishermen in Donggala said they found pieces of an aircraft that they suspected were from the AirAsia flight.

One of the fishermen, 52-year-old Lamori, said he was surprised when finding parts of an aircraft overhead locker in Donggala waters on Monday.

Other fishermen said they had found many similar pieces while searching for fish.

Based on Lamori’s information, Basarnas Palu and the Donggala Water Police coordinated to search the region. They found parts of an aircraft ceiling and doors.

The findings were to be sent to Surabaya, East Java, for examination.

Meanwhile, in Pinrang regency, South Sulawesi, fishermen reportedly found two bones thought to be from human feet and more aircraft parts on Wednesday.

The bones were found by different fishermen in separate places along the Suppa district coastline, Pinrang, some 950 kilometers from the flight’s crash site.

Fauzan Mahmud of the joint search and rescue team said the first bone was found at about 8 a.m. local time not far from the beach.

The second bone was found at about 10 a.m. the same day in Wiringtasi subdistrict, Suppa. An Adidas trainer was attached to the bone.

“One bone found this morning paired with [the other]. Both were found with trainers of the same brand, black Adidas with a yellow base,” Fauzan said, adding that the bones were found 15 km apart.

The bones found on Wednesday would be transported to Bhayangkara Makassar Hospital, where they would be flown to Surabaya for identification.

Fauzan Mahmud of the joint search and rescue team said the first bone was found at about 8 a.m. local time not far from the beach.

The second bone was found at about 10 a.m. the same day in Wiringtasi subdistrict, Suppa. An Adidas trainer was attached to the bone.

“One bone found this morning paired with [the other]. Both were found with trainers of the same brand, black Adidas with a yellow base,” Fauzan said, adding that the bones were found 15 km apart.

The bones found on Wednesday would be transported to Bhayangkara Makassar Hospital, where they would be flown to Surabaya for identification.

Basarnas Makassar head Roki Azikin said although all body parts and aircraft wreckage had been found by the fishermen, the joint search and rescue team would continue to search waters from Majene to Mamuju in West Sulawesi to the north and to Pinrang and Pare-pare in South Sulawesi to the south.

“We’re currently focusing on the south, which is on Pinrang and Pare-pare,” said Roki, adding that he was unsure how long the search would go on.

However, not all body parts sent from South Sulawesi to the East Java Police’s Disaster and Victim Identification (DVI) unit are from the bodies of victims on the AirAsia flight.

“Today, we determined that one body part labelled B007 is not one of the plane’s victims, but is instead from a primate,” DVI team chief Sr. Comr. Budiyono said as quoted by kompas.com on Wednesday.

Thursday 5 February 2015

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/05/search-victims-expands-c-sulawesi.html

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AirAsia Flight 8501: Indonesian divers retrieve 6 more bodies

Indonesian divers discovered six more bodies Tuesday from the wreckage of the crashed AirAsia plane, bringing to 90 the total number bodies retrieved from the jetliner.

AirAsia Flight 8501 crashed into the Java Sea on Dec. 28 with 162 people on board while flying from Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city, to Singapore.

The National Search and Rescue Agency and traditional divers are continuing the search after the Indonesian navy halted its own efforts last week due to the difficulty of lifting the fuselage from the water.

Agency spokesman Jusuf Latif said the discoveries brought to 90 the total bodies retrieved from the crash.

Some of the bodies were found floating off Sulawesi island, about 620 miles east of the crash scene one month after the crash.

Authorities believe many of the other bodies are still inside the fuselage and other big pieces of wreckage in the area, including the cockpit, which may contain the bodies of the pilot and co-pilot. Authorities have reported the cockpit wreckage to be about 500 meters (yards) from the main body of the Airbus A320.

Suryadi Bambang Supriyadi, the operation chief of the rescue agency, said 13 bodies were discovered by traditional divers on Monday and Tuesday from inside and around the fuselage which is at a depth of 100 feet on the seafloor.

Wednesday 4 February 2015

http://www.observer-reporter.com/article/20150203/NEWS06/150209832

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Taiwan plane crash: TransAsia Airways Flight hoisted from river; 26 confirmed dead

Rescuers used a crane to hoist the fuselage of a wrecked TransAsia Airways plane from a shallow river in Taiwan’s capital late on Wednesday as they searched into the night for 17 people missing in a crash that killed at least 26 others.

Flight 235 with 58 people aboard, most of them travellers from China, banked sharply on its side shortly after takeoff from Taipei, clipped a highway bridge and then careened into the Keelung River.

Rescuers in rubber rafts pulled 15 people alive from the wreckage during daylight. After dark, they brought in the crane, and the death toll was expected to rise once crews were able to search through submerged portions of the fuselage, which came to rest a few dozen meters (yards) from the shore.

Dramatic video clips apparently taken from cars were posted online and aired by broadcasters, showing the ATR 72 propjet as it pivoted onto its side while zooming toward a traffic bridge over the river.

In one of them, the plane rapidly fills the frame as its now-vertical wing scrapes over the road, hitting a vehicle before heading into the river.

Speculation cited in local media said the crew may have turned sharply to follow the line of the river to avoid crashing into a high-rise residential area, but Taiwan’s aviation authority said it had no evidence of that.

Taiwanese broadcasters repeatedly played a recording of the plane’s final contact with the control tower in which the crew called out “Mayday” three times.



The recording offered no direct clues as to why the plane was in distress.

Wednesday’s flight had taken off at 11:53 am from Taipei’s downtown Sungshan Airport en route to the outlying Taiwanese-controlled Kinmen islands.

The crew issued the mayday call shortly after takeoff, Taiwanese civil aviation authorities said.

TransAsia director Peter Chen said contact with the plane was lost four minutes after takeoff. He said weather conditions were suitable for flying and the cause of the accident was unknown.

“Actually this aircraft in the accident was the newest model. It hadn’t been used for even a year,” he told a news conference. Thirty-one passengers were from China, Taiwan’s tourism bureau said. Kinmen’s airport is a common link between Taipei and China’s Fujian province.

Taiwan’s Civil Aeronautics Administration said 26 people were confirmed dead, 15 were rescued with injuries and 17 were still missing. It said two people on the ground were hurt.

It was the airline's second French-Italian-built ATR 72 to crash in the past year.

Wu Jun-hong, a Taipei Fire Department official who was coordinating the rescue, said the missing people were either still in the fuselage or had perhaps been pulled down the river.

"At the moment, things don't look too optimistic," Wu told reporters at the scene. "Those in the front of the plane are likely to have lost their lives."

Rescuers could be seen pulling luggage from an open plane door to clear the fuselage. Ten inflatable dinghies also searched for the missing.

As a drizzle fell around nightfall, military crews took portable bridges to the scene, where rescue workers were building docks for easier access to the wreckage. About 300 rescue personnel and members of the media stood along the banks of the narrow river.

Part of the freeway above it was littered with debris and was closed after the crash.

Relatives of the victims had not reached the scene by dusk Wednesday but some were expected to arrive Thursday, including some flying from Beijing.

The plane's wing hit a taxi on the freeway, and the driver and a passenger were injured, Chen said.

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense said it had sent 165 people and eight boats to the riverside rescue scene, joining fire department rescue crews.

Another ATR 72 operated by the same Taipei-based airline crashed in the outlying Taiwan-controlled islands of Penghu last July 23, killing 48 at the end of a typhoon for reasons that are still under investigation.

ATR, a French-Italian consortium based in Toulouse, France, said it was sending a team to Taiwan to help in the investigation.

The ATR 72-600 that crashed Wednesday is manufacturer's best plane model, and the pilot had 4,900 hours of flying experience, said Lin Chih-ming of the Civil Aeronautics Administration.

Greg Waldron, Asia managing editor at Flightglobal magazine in Singapore, said the ATR 72-600 is the latest iteration of one of the most popular turboprop planes in the world, particularly favored for regional short-hop flights in Asia.

It has a generally good reputation for safety and reliability and is known among airlines for being cheap and efficient to operate.

While it's too early to say what caused the crash, engine trouble or weight shifting were unlikely to be causes, Waldron said. Other possible factors include pilot error, weather or freak incidents such as bird strikes.

"It's too early now to speculate on whether it was an issue with the aircraft or crew," Waldron said.

The accessibility of the crash site should allow for a swift investigation, and an initial report should be available within about a month, Waldron said.

Wednesday 4 February 2015

http://www.financialexpress.com/article/miscellaneous/transasia-airways-flight-235-crashed-taiwan-plane-hoisted-from-river-26-confirmed-dead/39044/

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/taiwan-plane-plunges-into-river-22-feared-dead-21-still-missing/article1-1313592.aspx

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1,299 unidentified bodies found in Punjab in two years

Punjab police informed the Supreme Court on Tuesday that 1,299 unidentified dead bodies were found in the province over the last two years.

Advocate General Punjab Razaq A Mirza submitted Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) in the SC regarding the registration and tracking of unidentified dead bodies.

He also submitted the inspector general Punjab’s report, which stated that 1,299 unidentified dead bodies were received in 2013 and 2014. Of these, 1,248 dead bodies were handed over for burial, adding that the remaining 51 bodies were handed over to anatomy department.

The report further states that if a body is unidentified, the officer making the investigation shall record a careful description of it, giving all marks, peculiarities, deformities and distinctive features of it and also take the figure impression of it in addition to taking all the reasonable steps to secure identification.

He shall publish a description in the Criminal Intelligent Gazette where such action appears desirable, it said. According to the SOP, the data of unidentified dead bodies will be gathered by the SHO concerned and uploaded on the web within 24 hours of the information received with consultation of the medical superintendent.

Meanwhile, Punjab health department has also stated in its report that in accordance with the rules and regulations, the investigation officer (IO) will bring the dead bodies to the hospital for the postmortem examination.

The report states that IO will hand over the dead body to the head of Anatomy department if not identified.

Meanwhile, the top court has expressed unhappiness over Sindh and K-P governments for not submitting procedure regarding the registration of unidentified dead bodies.

In response, law officers representing the two provinces requested the court to give them 20 more days to submit their respective replies over the procedure.

Wednesday 4 February 2015

http://tribune.com.pk/story/832575/1299-unidentified-bodies-found-in-punjab-in-two-years/

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Seven killed as New York train hits vehicle

A commuter train has hit a vehicle at a level crossing north of New York City, killing at least seven people and injuring 12, officials say.

The train, with about 800 passengers on board, hit the Jeep Cherokee near Valhalla - about 20 miles (32km) from New York - on Tuesday evening.

The vehicle's female driver was killed, along with six people on the train, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said.

The car and front carriage of the train caught fire following the crash.

The packed commuter train had left Grand Central Station in New York City and was heading to Wassaic in south-east New York State.

The crossing gates at the railroad had come down on top of the vehicle, which had stopped on the tracks, Metro-North Railroad spokesman Aaron Donovan said.

The driver got out to look at the damage, and then got back into the car to drive forward before it was hit by the train. It pushed the vehicle more than 120m (400ft).

It is not yet clear why the vehicle stalled on the tracks.

As a result of the collision the electrified third rail of the track came through the front carriage of the train.

Passengers had to escape from the rear of the train.

Mr Cuomo, who visited the site of the crash, said he witnessed "a truly ugly and brutal sight".

He added: "When you look at the damage done, it's actually amazing that not more people were hurt."

Hundreds were taken to a local rock climbing gym following the crash.

Parts of the railroad remain closed on Wednesday.

Metro-North is the second-busiest railroad in the US, serving about 280,000 passengers a day in New York and Connecticut.

Last year, the National Transportation Safety Board issued rulings on five accidents that occurred on the railroad in 2013 and 2014, criticising Metro-North while also finding conditions had improved.

Wednesday 4 February 2015

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-31124170

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Mozambique: Flood Death Toll Reaches 150

The number of deaths from the storms and floods in central and northern Mozambique so far this year has reached 150, according to Casimiro Abreu, deputy director of the country's relief agency, the National Disasters Management Institute (INGC).

The previous figure for fatalities, released a week ago, was 117. Abreu warned that the death toll could rise in the coming days, since more lifeless bodies are being discovered as the flood waters recede.

Abreu was speaking on Monday at a ceremony where the INC received a donation from the Japanese embassy.

He said that the province worst hit was Zambezia where so far 68 bodies have been recovered. Abreu put the number of people affected by the floods at about 150,000.

The Japanese donation consisted of tents and tarpaulins valued at 130,000 US dollars. The ambassador, Akira Mizutani declared “the Japanese government took prompt and immediate action, and decided to donate emergency humanitarian assistance to the Mozambican people”.

He hoped these goods would complement the efforts of the Mozambican government to mitigate the effects of the disasters which have struck the central and northern provinces.

Abreu thanked the ambassador for the gift. “The Japanese have always been our partners in various sectors of activity, and particularly in disaster management”, he said.

The representative in Mozambique of the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Katsuyoshi Sudo, said that Japan has experienced similar situations and is well aware of the pain and suffering caused by natural disasters.

Wednesday 4 February 2015

http://allafrica.com/stories/201502031809.html

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TransAsia crash: At least twelve dead as plane crashes into Taiwan river

At least 12 people have died after a TransAsia Airways plane clipped a bridge and crashed into a river near the Taiwanese capital of Taipei.

Fifty-eight people were onboard the domestic flight. The fuselage is now half-submerged in the Keelung River and lying on its side.

Rescuers on boats have cut it open to gain access to people trapped inside.

Officials say 16 people have suffered injuries, with some taken to hospital. Thirty people remain unaccounted for.

The ATR-72 turbo-prop plane had just taken off from Taipei Songshan Airport and was heading to the outlying Kinmen islands, just off the coast of the south-eastern Chinese city of Xiamen, CNA said.

Flight controllers lost contact with the plane at 10:55 local time (02:55 GMT).



Footage of the plane filmed from inside passing cars showed it banking sharply, hitting a taxi and clipping the bridge before crashing into the river.

Television images showed rescuers standing on large sections of broken wreckage trying to pull passengers out of the plane with ropes.

Those that were rescued were helped into dinghies and taken to shore, including a small boy.

Some were then placed on stretchers and taken to hospital. But officials said some passengers were still trapped inside the wreckage which appeared to be upside down and broken into many parts in the river.



"We're asking the public works department for heavy cranes to be deployed, in the hopes that the body of the plane can be lifted up," said Wu Jun-Hong, assistant director of Taipei's fire department.

"At the moment, we think a lot of the trapped people are in the head of the plane.

Out of the 58 people on board 53 are believed to be passengers and five are crew. Thirty-one of the passengers are tourists from mainland China.

The BBC's Cindy Sui in Taipei says the Chinese tourists could have been on their way home as many people come to Taiwan through Kinmen island.

The chief executive of TransAsia, Chen Xinde, offered a "deep apology" to passengers and crew on board in a televised news conference, Reuters news agency reported.

TransAsia Airways

Founded in 1951 as Taiwan's first private civilian-operated domestic airline, later expanded to overseas routes.

One of the region's smaller carriers though has rapidly expanded in recent years.

Has about 20 planes in its fleet - a mix of Airbus and dual-propeller ATR planes.

Gained popularity due to its low-cost tickets.

Flies many routes between Taiwan and mainland China, and to other parts of South East Asia.

In July 2014, 48 people died when a TransAsia Airways plane crashed amid stormy weather in Taiwan's Penghu archipelago.

Wednesday 4 February 2015

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-31125052

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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

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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/

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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

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