PIA crash victims’ identification to be completed by Monday

Karachi, June 1 (SocialNews.XYZ) Sindh Forensic DNA and Serology Laboratory (SFDL) at the University of Karachi has said it will complete the process of identifying bodies of the May 22 Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane crash victims by Monday.

According to a press release of the International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS) at the University of Karachi on Sunday, the SFDL has completed a total of 37 cross-match so far, and their reports have also been dispatched to the Sindh police department, reports The Express Tribune.

"SFDL with the help of 20 scientists and volunteers is currently engaged in massive undertaking of identifying bodies of unfortunate victims of the air crash," the spokesman of ICCBS said.

According to the statistics, maintained by the SFDL, as many as 67 samples have been received from the families of the victims, and 69 samples of the victims have also been received from the police department so far.

SFDL is the first of its kind facility in Sindh that specialises in the detection, identification and analysis of human DNA from evidence samples collected by law enforcement agencies from crime scenes.

Earlier on Sunday, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had said that of the 97 people who died in the plane crash, 75 had been identified and their bodies handed over to the heirs.

The PIA's Airbus A320 crashed in the residential area of Model Colony near the Karachi airport on May 22, minutes before landing. The plane flying from Lahore to Karachi had 99 people on board including passengers and crew.

Only two people miraculously survived the tragic incident.

Source: IANS