Tragedy
Sections
Highlight
Sections
Highlight
The efforts of forensic experts, Guardia Civil and National Police officers are focused on giving names to the victims of the deadly 'Dana' in Spain, but the death toll provided late on Wednesday by the High Court of Justice of the Valencia region does not coincide with the number of 211 released by the integrated operational coordination centre (Cecopi), the coordination body for the disaster.
The morgue in the City of Justice in Valencia has received 199 corpses, all of which have already been autopsied, since the tragedy struck. Of these, 145 have been fully identified (127 by fingerprints and another 18 by DNA) according to the latest update of figures by the data integration centre (CID).
Meanwhile, the offices set up by the National Police and the Guardia Civil in collaboration with forensic doctors counted 93 active cases of missing persons reports up to 8pm hours on Wednesday, four more than on Tuesday, when there were 89.
Both parameters, the number of active disappearances and the total number of fatalities are different and should not be added together in any case. Therefore the active disappearance cases may increase or decrease depending on new identifications of existing deceased persons, the increase of disappearance reports or the location of living persons.
The number of cases of missing persons that are active correspond solely to reports where the relatives have provided personal information and biological samples together with the reports in the offices that allow the subsequent identification of their loved ones. These offices are located in Valencia, both in the Guardia Civil and in the National Police headquarters.
In addition, mobile offices have been set up in the towns of Albal (Guardia Civil post), Alfafar (municipal Social welfare building) and Algemesí (Local Police station) to collect information and reports from relatives of missing persons, so that they do not have to travel to Valencia. Their opening hours are from 9am to 9pm.
The official number of disappearances also varies according to the number of corpses identified by forensic experts. The specialists compare the genetic profiles and fingerprints of the deceased persons who have yet to be identified with those in the database of missing persons.
The priority for most of the mobilised emergency services is still to find the missing. Dozens of drivers were trapped in their vehicles and others were swept away by the floods. Their families are in anguish and as the hours go by they are losing hope of finding their loved ones alive.
The SOS Desaparecidos missing persons association has asked the public to help locate several of the people who disappeared on the fateful 29 October: Fernando Durán Nuñez (Benetússer), Lorenza Marlene Villaverde (Catarroja), Javi Sánchez Rocafull (Sot de Chera), Aurelio Martín Mateo (Alfafar), Manuel Blesa (Paiporta), Antonio Ruiz Fernández (Paiporta). Roberto Grau Gómez (Massanassa), Bassem Zeitoun (Torrent), Florin Costel (Alfafar), Axinia Sandu (Alfafar), the brothers Izan Matías and Rubén Matías (Torrent), Silvanna Lochi (between Puçol and Turís) and Francisco Ruzo Martínez (Montserrat).
SOS Desaparecidos is also calling for the deletion of messages that are disseminated on social media networks when victims are found alive or dead. "If this situation is resolved, please delete the message and thus avoid thousands of people trying to contact the emergency services for the same request that has already been solved," said the association.
Nationally, the number of people who died as a result of the 'Dana' in Spain provisionally stands at 219 including, apart from the 211 referred to in the province of Valencia, one in the province of Malaga and seven more in Albacete, where on Wednesday the bodies of the last two missing persons who were still looking for rescue services in the town of Letur were found.
Publicidad
Publicidad
Publicidad
Publicidad
Esta funcionalidad es exclusiva para registrados.
Reporta un error en esta noticia
Debido a un error no hemos podido dar de alta tu suscripción.
Por favor, ponte en contacto con Atención al Cliente.
¡Bienvenido a SURINENGLISH!
Tu suscripción con Google se ha realizado correctamente, pero ya tenías otra suscripción activa en SURINENGLISH.
Déjanos tus datos y nos pondremos en contacto contigo para analizar tu caso
¡Tu suscripción con Google se ha realizado correctamente!
La compra se ha asociado al siguiente email
Comentar es una ventaja exclusiva para registrados
¿Ya eres registrado?
Inicia sesiónNecesitas ser suscriptor para poder votar.