The Panamanian forensic authorities were working on Thursday to identify the 39 fatalities of the accident that occurred in the west of the country when the bus in which migrants were traveling to a shelter fell on a slope.
The Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences said that it will require information from the migrants’ countries of origin to obtain their fingerprint and/or dental records and samples from relatives to make genetic comparisons for the identification of the bodies.
The work to identify the victims and to establish the causes of death is being carried out in the judicial morgue in the province of Chiriquí, on the border with Costa Rica, where the accident occurred the day before. “This process will take time. Meanwhile, the corpses will be preserved with the due dignity established by international standards,” the Institute said in a statement.
Worst
The accident that occurred on Wednesday is the worst road mishap since the Central American country authorized years ago the transfer by bus of migrants crossing the dangerous Darién jungle, on the border with Colombia, to a shelter bordering Costa Rica so that they can continue their route to North America.
So far, the immigration authorities have said that migrants from Africa and South American countries such as Ecuador and Brazil were traveling on the bus, but they have not given more details about the nationalities of the deceased. Cuba and Ecuador have lamented the tragedy.
