Singapore sends team to help identify bodies of those on board AirAsia flight QZ8501

Indonesian officers carry coffins with the remains of passengers of AirAsia flight QZ8501 before being sent to Surabaya, in Pangkalan Bun on Jan 3, 2015. -- PHOTO: AFP
Indonesian officers carry coffins with the remains of passengers of AirAsia flight QZ8501 before being sent to Surabaya, in Pangkalan Bun on Jan 3, 2015. -- PHOTO: AFP

SINGAPORE - A Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team comprising six officers from the Singapore Police Force and two forensic experts from the Health Sciences Authority departed on Saturday for Surabaya to assist Indonesia in identifying victims of AirAsia flight QZ8501.

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Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs Mr Masagos Zulkifli joined family members to send off the team at Changi Airport.

He said on Facebook: "We will do all we can to support our Indonesian friends in these difficult times. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of the victims."

Superintendent (Supt) Sng May Yen, who was also part of the DVI team deployed to Phuket during the aftermath of the 2004 Asian tsunami, said that the team will "do our best and try to help as many families as possible", according to a post on the Home team's Facebook page.

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