The Lagos State Government says 132 bodies of victims of the Dana plane crash are ready for collection by their relatives.
This followed the arrival of the bodies from the UK after the Deoxynubonucleic acid results (DNA).
DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Jide Idris, disclosed this at a meeting with the relatives of the deceased at Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja (LASUTH) on Wednesday.
Idris said, “We have got some of the results of the DNA analysis from the UK.
“The experts have revealed the results and we felt it necessary to brief the victims on the processes and documentation needed to claim the bodies.
“We will release the bodies in batches of 20 in alphabetical order daily from Thursday, to reduce the chaos and to resolve some legal processes needed to claim the bodies”.
Idris said that the names of the already identified victims would be pasted at the Lekan Ogunshola Memorial House.
He advised the relatives to come with the appropriate documents to claim the bodies.
Also, Prof. John Obafunwa, the hospital Chief Pathologist and Chief Medical Examiner, said that 16 other bodies were still being processed.
Obafunwa said that the corpses would only be released to their next of kin after presentation of necessary documents.
He listed the order of priority for the next of kin as spouses, children, parents, siblings, half brothers and sisters, grandparents, nephews and nieces.
“The next of kin is in this order and they have to present legal documents before the bodies would be released to them.
“But, in the case where the next of kin is not available, he or she has to authorise someone else to collect the body with appropriate identification.
“The authorised person has to come with the driver’s licence, national identity card, international passport and letter of authorisation by the next of kin.” he said. (NAN)