Scientific testing will be used: No more viewing to ID the victims
Authorities yesterday said that they would not anymore allow those seeking their missing relatives to view the bodies of the victims of the sinking of M/V Princess of the Stars since these are now beyond recognition.
Authorities explained yesterday that ‘public viewing’ as secondary means for identifying the victims is no longer applicable and scientific methods as primary identification parameter — DNA testing, finger printing and dental examination — should now be considered.
The Disaster Victims Identification team of National Bureau of Investigation led by Dr. Renato Bautista, which is conducting the forensics examination of the dead from MV Princess of the Stars, said they are now taking dental casting and fingerprints of the cadavers.
They are also preparing to take a piece of femoral bone from the cadavers for use as post mortem sample for a much efficient and credible identification process — the DNA test.
“It’s practically impossible ngayon na makilala pa ninyo ang mga mukha ng inyong mga nawawalang kamag-anakan,” Bautista speaking in behalf of the team and the Interpol-International Commission for Missing Persons told the relatives of the victims.
The ICMP of the Interpol volunteered to train local policemen staring today on how to get and preserve deoxyribonucleic (DNA) samples, more likely from the relatives of the victims or missing persons.
The decision was made after the DVI and ICMP noticed that relatives, who were made to view the bodies, mostly failed to identify the bodies by physical appearance of the cadavers because some of the remains already lost flesh due to the days that passed before they were retrieved.
Prior to the announcement, acting Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama asked the NBI to stress the reasons why they have to stop the public viewing so that the families could understand.
The ICMP demonstrated yesterday how DNA samples are taken in the person of Interpol secretary general Ronald Noble as the “donor.”
ICMP team leader Olaf Worbs took four drops of “bloodstain” sample using the DNA kit by pricking the ring finger with the disposable needle.
The DNA kit contents are all disposable includes the small card where the bloodstain is kept, the surgical gloves, the needle, a pack of alcohol pad.
The small card has four small round circles where the bloodstain is dropped and four bar code stickers are also found at the other side.
These sticker bar codes is used as the reference codes for the DNA sample and its accompanying document where the personal and confidential information of the victim provided by the relative is recorded.
Without the “public viewing” as part of the action center’s operation anymore the center is expected to be busy in the documentation, filing of the claims and other matters including stress debriefing for those who are still not able to get over with what happened.
As the public viewing is stopped, the DVI and the ICMP can now start profiling and taking DNA samples from the bodies. DNA samples from the dead are taken from the femoral bones.
The cadaver’s DNA sample called post mortem specimen and the relatives DNA bloodstain samples will be analyzed and stored to the computer and will be cross-matched with each sample until a match comes out.
Torkjel Reynestad, the chief of staff of Norwegian National Criminal Investigation Service and one of the ICMP in an interview with The Freeman said it would only take one to three hours to get a result in a regular DNA test process for one person and his nearest kin.
But with the number of dead in this incident, it would largely depend on the availability of the specimen from both dead and the relatives and could not give exact length of time before the result is produced.
“It all depends on the post mortem samples and the ante mortem samples, it’s hypothetical to tell when, because there is a possibility that you have more of the either samples (post mortem and ante mortem samples) to compare to,” Rygnestad explained.
Other possibilities that the samples could not find a match, it is because the post mortem sample did not find a match from the ante mortem samples, one reason is no relatives gave DNA samples and vice versa.
In spite of the length of time that the relatives must endure to have a result this is the only way that they could identify their loved ones and not bring cadavers home out of mistaken identities.
Parents and siblings of the victims are the best source for DNA sample. Noble said the relatives can give as many DNA samples they want.
Meanwhile, Bernard Ryan Go of Sulpicio Lines in an interview with The Freeman said the Interpol’s assistance is greatly appreciated as this will help the families find their love ones.
Go said the retrieval of bodies from around Romblon and Camarines Sur still continues and asking the public to give them information if there are bodies found in their areas and also survivors.
Meanwhile, the Trade Union Congress of the
The TUCP said they understand and mourn along with the families of the victims of the said vessel and hope for them to find their loved ones and peace.
But with the constant calls from various sectors to cancel the franchise to operate or Certificate of Public Convenience of the Sulpicio Lines the TUCP fears that the workers and the families of the shipping company would also be greatly affected.
The organization wants an impartial investigation to determine whose fault it is on the part of the government agencies involved and also the shipping company involved and this should result to a better maritime law enforcement, coordination of
- Latest
- Trending
