Wednesday, July 02, 2008 100 bodies arrive By Elisabeth P. Baumgart Sun.Star Correspondent
BODIES of 100 more victims of the mv Princess of the Stars sinking arrived yesterday, bringing to 149 the total number of cadavers that have been shipped to Cebu.
This as two more officials from the International Police (Interpol) arrived Monday night to help authorities in identifying the bodies that have been recovered.
Interpol Secretary General Roland Noble and Forensic Expert of the International Commission for Missing Persons Andreas Klauser joined disaster victim identification (DVI) Specialized Officer Olaf Worbs, DVI specialist Torkjel Rygnest and Policy Analyst Simon Fernan, who arrived in the country Sunday.
Today, President Arroyo will visit the action center at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) to check relief operations and to condole with the victims’ relatives.
She will also have lunch with them.
Yesterday, 100 more bodies that were recovered in the islands of Burias, Pasacao, San Pascual and Romblon arrived in Cebu.
National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7 Medico-Legal Officer Dr. Rene Cam said the bodies were in an advanced stage of decomposition.
Because the stench of decomposing flesh was so strong, the vessel carrying the 100 bodies anchored in the middle of the Mactan Channel so the bodies could be initially processed there, away from the public.
Segregation
Cam said that while onboard the mv Cagayan Princess, they segregated the 62 men, 37 women and one child. Each body was sealed in a double plastic bag to contain the foul odor.
Cam also said that 20 bodies had identification tags, while 13 bodies had to be exhumed from Burias Island.
While all bodies were doused in lime, only a few were embalmed. Should the body bags be opened, the stench of decomposing flesh would still be there.
The Bureau of Quarantine was also onboard the vessel and sprayed the whole area with disinfectant in hopes of killing any possible bacteria.
While the vessel arrived in Cebu early morning, the mv Cagayan Princess docked at the Cebu International Port only at 2 p.m. with the bodies already segregated.
The bodies were then brought to the Cosmopolitan Funeral Homes on Junquera St., Cebu City for a public viewing of relatives and family members.
However, with the bodies being in an advanced stage of decomposition, identification by mere viewing may be fruitless.
Given the timeframe that the bodies have been underwater or underground, plus the element of heat, bodies may be beyond recognition.
This is what Interpol officials told grieving relatives and family when they faced them for the first time yesterday at the action center.
“Let us be honest with you, with the state that they are in, it may be hard to for you to identify your loved ones,” said Noble.
The five-man team, however, assured the families that they would solve that problem and assist the families in bringing their loved ones home.
Noble said that after hearing of the sinking of the mv Princess of the Stars last June 21 and the many lives that were lost, Interpol decided to fly to the country and help in the DVI process.
“When we learned what happened on June 21st, it broke our hearts. We feel for you. There’s nothing we can do to bring back your loved ones, we know that, but we can help. We have the expertise, we have the will, the commitment, to help identify your loved ones, as quickly, as efficiently, and as dignified a manner as possible,” said Noble.
He added that Interpol will be working with the International Commission for Missing Persons that uses state-of-the-art DNA analysis.
“That would allow us to make the most effective, efficient and accurate identification of your loved ones,” he said.
Assurance
As other Interpol officials talked to the distressed families of victims, Noble assured them that they would not stop in their assistance until “the last of your loved ones has been identified.”
Noble added that though DNA testing and comparison may be the most efficient and accurate way of DVI, families should still be prepared that yielding results may take weeks or even months.
For the process to work faster, Interpol will set up an information center at the Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 where families are requested to provide all necessary information regarding their missing loved ones.
Among the information requested of families are bloodstain samples, which will be used as a basis for the DNA analysis.
Some 3,000 DNA kits will be shipped within two weeks; as soon as these arrive, DNA samples may be collected from family members.
A wave of relief washed over troubled family members as they learned of Interpol’s commitment in the identification of their missing loved ones. A soft round of applause rang through the action center as Interpol announced that all their services that they would be provided were free of charge.
Noble added that six experts from Interpol will be also arriving in the coming days to assist the NBI on the entire DVI process.
DVI experts will also train the local forensic team in the “DNA state-of-the-art process.”
For them to process DNA samples, Noble told reporters that they will also be requiring five refrigerated container vans and mobile forensic laboratories.
“We will be asking the shipping company (Sulpi-cio Lines Inc.) to try to provide us with the five refrigerated vans,” said Noble.
However, Cebu City Councilor Gerardo Carillo told Sun.Star Cebu that the City Government will provide container vans and mobile laboratories instead.
The Cebu International Port (CIP) will serve as the venue for the refrigerated container vans and mobile forensic laboratories, said Carillo.
