The CMD also revealed that 103 bodies had been burnt beyond recognition and had been moved from LASUTH morgue to the Mainland Hospital, Yaba, for further forensic examination.
“Twenty-nine bodies were earlier identified, but another 14 have also being identified now, making a total of 43,” Oke told our correspondent late on Tuesday.
In the first batch of 29 corpses already identified was that of a former Deputy Inspector-General of Police John Ahmadu Hamza.
Also on the list of corpses identified, according to the CMD, were Martin Alade (M); Sonny Ehioghae (M); Temitope Ariyibi (F); Okocha Christopher (M), Stanford Obstrute (M); Ikpoki Obiola (M); Patrick Eze Okonji (M); Bassey Eyo (M); Kanguyi (Chinese (M); Charles Ntoko (M); Dr Abiodun Jonathan (M); Ifeanwaka Jones (M); Obot Emmanuel (M); Prof C.O. Onwuluri, Chinwe Uzoamaka Obi (F); Olabinjo Awodogbin (M); Anibaba Tosin (F); Obinna Akubueze (M); Nagidi Ibrahim (M); Mahmud Ahmed Dukawa (M); Ibrahim Jangana (M); George Moses (M); Femi Shobowale (M); Ailende Ehi Joel (M); Kim Edger Norris (M); One unnamed female and two babies whose names were yet to be established.
The identities of the other 14 were yet to be released on Tuesday.
Oke however said the bodies could not be immediately released to family members of the deceased in view of the coroner law in operation in the state.
“Nobody has been taken away. There is a state law on coroner inquest with all of them dying suddenly in a plane crash, they would require autopsy and investigations. Litigation cannot (also) be ruled out. So we must do it right,” he said.
The LASUTH CMD added, “We require all these and also more examinations, so as to ensure that we are giving the bodies to the right persons. We need forensic examination and DNA testing as part of the requirement. X-rays are being done, tissues are being taken to properly identify the bodies being processed.
“Then we would face the unrecognisable ones squarely. That is why we are doing things steadily. Some of them have ATM cards, identity cards but we must carry out those tests to make sure the right persons carry the right body.”
Source
History of the ill-fated aircraft
ReplyDeleteUS-based Alaska Airlines sold it to Dana Airlines on February 17, 2009.
on November 4, 2002 the aircraft developed fault and had emergency diversion due to smoke and electrical smell in the cabin area, which engineers said was because light ballast had over heated.
Four years after, the aircraft’s health was also called to question when on August 20, 2006, it was again evacuated after landing at the Long Beach, CA due to a chaffed wire bundle that discharged and produced smoke in the cabin area again.
Apparently scared that the worst could happen, Alaska Airlines was said to have on August 21 parked the aircraft at Victorville until September 11 2008 when it carried out maintenance on it.
Eventually on February 2009 Alaska Airlines shifted the burden to Nigeria when it sold the ill-fated plane as 5N-RAM.
On May 3, an unnamed Lagos station manager of the airline was reported to have drawn the attention of management of the airlines that the aircraft in question needed to be grounded for general check-up but that alarm was ignored.
So on May 11, 2012, the same aircraft that was billed for Lagos/Abuja with more than half capacity passengers and an air return and had emergency landing at the Murtala Muhammed airport. Reports said passengers on board had to hurriedly disembark and sought alternative means of travelling. No casualty.
On May 25, 2012, the same plane that was to do Lagos/Calabar flight also made another air return to Lagos after the crew reported engine fault. There was also no casualty.
Then came the final straw. On June 3, 2012, the same MD-83 with registration number 5N-RAM was performing a flight 9J-1993 from Lagos to Abuja with 153 passengers on board when the crew also discovered that the engine had developed fault. The pilot made a quick air return to Lagos.
But while on a final approach to the runway 19L, the aircraft rammed into a power line, crashed into a build-up area about 5-6nm from touch down.