Kurla hotel fire: Identifying victims was a big challenge

17 October,2015 07:02 AM IST |   |  Sadaguru Pandit

Even several hours after the blaze at City Kinara restaurant, many of the deceased remained unidentified, as their bodies had been charred beyond recognition.


Even several hours after the blaze at City Kinara restaurant, many of the deceased remained unidentified, as their bodies had been charred beyond recognition.

Also read: Eight killed in cylinder blast at Mumbai hotel; 5 students missing

"Not even shreds of their clothes were to be found. That's why we didn't allow college students to go in and identify their friends. All the bodies had been charred beyond recognition. We tried to establish their identity through their belongings, until their families arrived," said a morgue attendant at Rajawadi Hospital. As friends and family learnt of the disaster, they rushed to Rajawadi Hospital. The hospital's mortuary was swarming with concerned family members and students from the Engineering and Media departments, looking for their missing friends.

Kins of the victims. Pic/Datta Kumbhar

Vidya Thakur, medical superintendent of the hospital, confirmed that all victims had been brought in dead. "The blast had severely injured every single person present at the spot. We are now trying to handle the situation by persuading the relatives to identify the victims one by one," she added.

Pic/Datta Kumbhar

Out of the eight deceased, six were identified by their relatives. BMM student, Erwin D'Souza was identified with the help of the pan card found in his wallet. It was Sajid Chowdhari's body that presented the greatest difficulty, but he was eventually identified by his family.

Victim's family in tears.

The bodies were sent for autopsy, and forensic experts have collected skin and blood samples, as well as bones and bloodstained clothes, which will be sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory in Kalina for DNA analysis.

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