Death and dread is in the air

[Lahore_Real_Estate]

Mutilated bodies and coffins land into sight of wet eyes

* PIMS ED says since the bodies coming to hospital are in pieces, it could take 3-4 days to identify them through DNA tests

By Mahtab Bashir

ISLAMABAD: Arrival of each dead body at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) multiplied the agony of the already grieved relatives of the ill-fated Airbus 320 passengers, as the bodies came into pieces making them unable to identify their loved ones.

With the stopping of every ambulance at PIMS Emergency Ward’s gate, anguished relatives rushed towards the vehicle with the hope that the dead body was complete and identifiable, but they turned back in tears knowing the fact it was mutated and beyond recognition.

“We cannot explain our agony, we don’t know if he is alive,” said Bilal Haider while talking to Daily Times about his brother who was on board the ill-fated flight. He said he had come to receive his younger brother Abbas, who went to Karachi for a job interview after getting a Masters degree in business administration.

“Had we known that this is going to happen, we would never have sent him,” Haider said with tears in his eyes.

Eight relatives of Iqbal, another passenger of the airbus gathered at PIMS emergency gate, said that they could not believe it. They were shocked even more knowing that it would take few more days to identify the bodies.

“So far the reason for the crash is not known. The black box of the plane has not been found yet. It could be related to bad weather as it was raining heavily in Islamabad when the plane crashed. But we want our dear ones back,” they screamed.

They said weather was not as bad as people are talking about. “Even in worst weather conditions we have seen a lot of successful air travels but this is unbelievable- we are astonished,” they said.

Few others relatives waiting for bodies of their dear ones said apparently the cause of the crash was bad weather, but we leave that to the investigators as we could not do more than that.

DNA tests: PIMS Executive Director Dr Jamal Mehmood told Daily Times that since the dead bodies coming to hospital were in pieces, it could take three to four days to identify them through DNA tests.

Airblue is one of Pakistan’s most respected airlines. It has been operating since 2004, using new Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft on domestic routes and international services to Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Muscat and Manchester.

The most recent fatal commercial crash was a Pakistan International Airlines Fokker F27 that came down in July 2006, killing 45 people on takeoff from the central city of Multan, bound for Lahore.

The deadliest civilian plane crash involving a Pakistani jet was a PIA Airbus A300 that crashed into a cloud-covered hillside on its approach to the Nepalese capital Katmandu, killing 167 people in September 1992.