Fewer relatives search for missing bodies as DNA identification gains pace
Summary
Fewer relatives are visiting Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital to identify bodies from the Bhotekoshi floods as severe decomposition makes visual recognition difficult. Police are increasingly relying on DNA samples, while collective funerals have begun for some missing victims.
Key Points
- Relatives searching for missing people at TUTH have dropped by about 50 percent in a week as bodies recovered from the Bhotekoshi floods are too decomposed for visual identification.
- Police and forensic officials are increasingly collecting DNA samples from bodies and family members in districts including Nuwakot, Dhading, Chitwan, Rasuwa and Kathmandu.
- As of Wednesday, TUTH had received 298 bodies, with 231 managed and 24 identified bodies handed over to relatives.
- Nepal Police said 4,077 people remain missing, while 1,367 bodies have been recovered and DNA samples have been collected from 1,268 deceased people and 1,412 relatives.
