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CEBU CITY, Philippines - Forensic experts from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and Interpol-France are turning to DNA testing to identify badly decomposed remains of passengers of the MV Princess of the Stars.
This means family members of the victims would have to submit samples - an oral smear - at the funeral home, said Wilfred Tiero, assistant team leader of the Disaster Victims Identification (DVI) team.
Three forensic experts from the France branch of Interpol — Olaf Worbs, Rygnestad Torkjel and Simon Fernan — arrived in Cebu City to join in conducting the autopsies.
Tiero said the families would also undergo an ante-mortem interview to provide all relevant data about the victims before they died.
While it takes less than an hour to examine a cadaver, it takes more time to identify the remains, he said.
Fingerprints, dental examination and basic information like the clothing, birth marks, jewelries, and other basic items of the victims would continue to be obtained and submitted to the NBI for verification, Tiero said.
In cases where two families are claiming one cadaver, the DNA tests would have primary consideration, Tiero said.
Many families continue to hope that they can recover the remains of their loved ones.
Dimple Dionaldo, together with her husband and mother-in-law, submitted all the documents needed to identify the body of her father-in-law, Vicente Dionaldo.
Although there is a slim chance that her father-in-law is alive, they still remain hopeful.
“We are still hanging on to a very thin line. We are trying to find the body and we are after what Sulpicio could give us (P200,000 insurance). What will we do with the money if the body is not there,” Dionaldo said.
She said her father-in-law's birth certificate is not in the records of the National Statistics Office (NSO).
According to Tiero, it is important that the kins submit all that is required for proper identification.
The DVI team specializes in identifying bodies that are victims of maritime and air disaster.
The same team handled the cadavers of the victims of the Tsunami incident in Phuket, Thailand, in the sinking of the Super Ferry 14, the St. Bernard, Guinsaugon, Southern Leyte landslide.
The team documents their findings in photos and videos.
Tiero said it is not feasible to conduct all their documentation inside the vessel before setting on land to Cebu.
“We have to transfer all the bodies in one investigating area and that is here (Cosmopolitan Funeral parlor in Junquera street),” Tiero said.
He said although the equipments are not that advanced as in Phuket they were still able to manage.
The team finished examining all 49 cadavers on Monday and is ready for the next batch, which will arrive Tuesday with the help of four additional DVI specialists from Norway, Germany, and Canada, and the Philippines.
According to Tiero, a DNA test for every cadaver would reach as much as P60,000.
One DNA test from specimens of the victim's kin would cost P15,000 to P20,000 and the DVI needs three specimens for each cadaver.
“For sure the families will not shoulder the expenses,” Tiero told Cebu Daily News.
Meanwhile, NBI Medico-Legal Officer Dr. Renato Bautista said families who cannot stomach the stench of the remains are advised not to view them at the Cosmopolitan Funeral Homes.
The second batch of cadavers is composed of 57 males, 28 females, 1 unidentified person whose gender cannot be determined and 13 others which are already sealed.
Their dead bodies were recovered from the coastal towns in Camarines Sur, Sibuyan Island and other neighboring provinces. /With a story from Reporter Nilda Gallo
