DVI mission completed after 30 victims identified

Nakhon Ratchasima governor Anupong Suksomnit on Sunday announced the closure of a special disaster victim identification (DVI) centre after all 30 victims killed in the crane collapse incident were identified.

Anupong and deputy governor Wichit Kitvirat told a press conference at Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital that the DVI centre’s mission had been completed and the centre would therefore be closed.

Authorities thank agencies for rapid identification and return of bodies

Anupong said the operation received full cooperation from all sectors—from transporting victims to the hospital through to the DVI process—allowing verification to be completed quickly so the bodies could be returned to families for religious rites.

Wichit said the DVI centre began operations on January 15, a day after the base of a launching gantry crane fell onto a passing passenger express train below.

By Sunday, all 30 victims had been identified, he said, and the bodies were to be handed over to relatives by Sunday evening.

Support provided for relatives, transport of bodies arranged

Wichit said the provincial administration provided food and accommodation for relatives waiting for the identification process to be completed. He added that the Hook 31 Nakhon Ratchasima Foundation assisted in transporting bodies to victims’ home provinces.

Casualties and injured reported after train incident

Wichit said there were 157 passengers travelling from Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station, along with five railway staff. Along the route, 12 passengers got off and seven boarded, meaning 157 passengers were affected at the time of the incident. In addition, four workers from Italian-Thai were injured, bringing the total number of people affected to 161.

There were 30 fatalities and 71 injured. Sixteen people remain in hospital. Four cases are in critical condition (red category), including a 1-year-and-10-month-old toddler. The latest update said their condition is gradually improving, but they remain under close monitoring.

Police forensic teams confirm identities via fingerprints and DNA

Pol Maj Gen Phitchaya Jiranyorot, commander of Forensic Science Centre 3 under the Police Forensic Science Office, said the incident was severe and the national police chief had assigned the Police Forensic Science Office to join the operation.

She said expert teams from the Institute of Forensic Medicine at Police General Hospital worked with forensic teams from Maharaj Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital. The identification process confirmed all 30 deaths through fingerprint and DNA examinations. As for the 13 body parts recovered, they were confirmed to belong to the same 30 victims, with no additional victims identified.

Compensation package totals 1.773 million baht per fatality

Phitchaya said each deceased person’s family will receive 1,773,000 baht, comprising: 20,000 baht in royal assistance granted by His Majesty the King; 1,000,000 baht from an insurance policy; support from the Rajaprajanugroh Foundation; 10,000 baht for funeral arrangements; 200,000 baht from the provincial Justice Fund; 3,000 baht in assistance for people facing social hardship from the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security; 50,000 baht from the Prime Minister’s Office disaster relief fund; 150,000 baht from Italian-Thai, the contractor; and 340,000 baht from the State Railway of Thailand.

Site clearance to finish Sunday, rail repairs within 24 hours

Asked about progress in clearing the accident site, Rapee Chomnongpho, Railway Inspector 2 and a representative of the State Railway of Thailand (SRT), said the clearance operation would be expedited and completed within Sunday.

He added that repairs to the railway track would be completed within 24 hours so services could resume as normal.

Preliminary assessments put the cost of the two damaged rail cars at more than 105 million baht, excluding compensation paid by the SRT to victims’ families, repair costs and losses from service disruption. All costs will be compiled and claimed in full from the contractor, he said.