214 Bodies Identified, 204 Handed Over to Kin

The identities of 214 victims of Air India's Dreamliner crash have been confirmed through DNA profiling and the bodies of 204 victims have been handed over to their families, officials said on Thursday, a week after the Ahmedabad-London flight crashed seconds after takeoff, killing 241 people on board and several others when it crashed into a hostel building on the ground.

- Maulik Pathak

AHMEDABAD:

"The authorities have recovered 318 body parts of the victims...the exact toll can't be given now but it will be given in two to three days," said Ahmedabad Police Commissioner GS Malik.

"DNA profiling has confirmed the identities of 214 victims," he said.

"Of these, 204 bodies have been handed over to their families. Eight bodies, belonging to individuals who died on the ground and could be visually identified, were released earlier without the need for DNA matching. The remaining bodies will be handed over once the identification process is complete," the commissioner said.

The DNA profiling was necessitated as the impact of the crash left most victims unidentifiable.

The London-bound Boeing 787-8, with 230 passengers and 12 crew on board, took off from Ahmedabad at around 1:38 pm, climbed to approximately 625 ft. The chief pilot of the plane issued a "Mayday" distress call, denoting a full emergency, soon after takeoff, to the Air Traffic Control. Moments later, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed into the BJ Medical College hostel in Meghaninagar area of Ahmedabad.

The passengers included 169 Indian nationals, 53 British, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian national. Only one person, Viswash Kumar, miraculously survived the crash.