Chinese authorities have revealed that all 132 victims of the China Eastern Airlines Flight MU5735 crash have been identified through DNA testing. The Boeing 737-800 crashed into a hillside in Wuzhou en route to Guangzhou on Monday last week.
DNA testing identifies all 132 crash victims
After the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) confirmed that none of the 132 passengers and crew from China Eastern Airlines Flight MU5735 survived, Chinese authorities have identified all victims via DNA testing.
Liu Kaihui, from the Ministry of Public Security’s forensic evidence department, said DNA samples from relatives and other biometric measures confirmed the identities of all victims
During an official news conference on Monday, Kaihui also revealed that public security authorities across 20 regions were mobilized to collect DNA samples from relatives of those onboard.
Twenty DNA experts carried out analyses and had identified 120 of the victims (114 passengers and six crew) by Saturday. The identity of the final victim was confirmed on Monday. Kaihui added,
Zhu Tao, CAAC aviation safety director, said,
“We are collecting as much debris as possible, as well as eyewitness footage, because black boxes alone may not be enough to reveal what really happened. We’ll release key findings to the public in a timely manner.”
However, search operations at the hilly and forested crash site near Wuzhou have been hampered by ongoing rainfall. The search has involved more than 15,600 firefighters and armed police, with over 36,000 pieces of debris recovered so far.
Additionally, a Guangxi official confirmed that no key compounds from explosives had been detected at the crash site.
