Remains of possible Yolanda victims found 2 years later

TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines – Remains of possible victims of Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) are still found two years after the tragedy.

Five bodies were found in Barangay (village) 87 in this city on Saturday, November 8, the eve of the typhoon’s second anniversary. Local officials and the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said these likely belonged to victims of the typhoon that devastated the Visayas.

Edgar Posadas, acting director of OCD Region 8, said a forensic examination must verify that the bodies were those of Yolanda victims.

“We cannot say conclusively that these are victims of Yolanda but it is possible because there was no other humanitarian crisis that occurred after Yolanda,” Posadas told reporters.

Residents found the remains, down to skeletons.

The monster storm ravaged Tacloban and the rest of Eastern Visayas on November 8, 2013. It killed over 6,000 while Posadas said about 1,000 remain missing in the region alone.

In the aftermath of the typhoon, finding and burying bodies were a challenge as local and national officials were overwhelmed with the magnitude of the disaster.

Some bodies were found on trees, others buried after massive storm surges hit the city. Many residents walked from town to town in the hope of finding their loved ones.

Leo Bahin, the barangay captain, said this is not the first time his village found remains. In 2015 alone, 20 bodies were found while more than 100 were discovered from 2013 to 2014.

Bahin and Posadas said the bodies are usually found during the rainy season, and when residents dig the ground in the process of constructing new houses.

Leyte Representative Martin Romualdez, who inspected the remains with cousin Tacloban Mayor Alfred Romualdez, said that the discovery of the remains made the Yolanda commemoration meaningful.

“This is a somber reminder of what happened in Yolanda, of the tragic losses we had to endure,” he told reporters.

‘Closure’

Posadas said a lengthy and thorough process is needed to officially confirm that the bodies were those of Yolanda victims.

He said the signature of the mayor, municipal health officer, local chief of police and local disaster risk reduction and management office are needed in the verification process.

The remains were brought to the local Bureau of Fire and then transferred to the local National Bureau of Investigation.

A DNA test is needed to identify the remains. Officials usually work with relatives of missing victims.

Clothing and articles also help identify the bodies. One of the remains found Saturday had a scapular, while the others had a pantyhose and undergarments.

Despite the rigorous process, pedicab driver Jose Sagales needed no other confirmation.

Upon seeing one of the remains, he broke down in tears and said it was his missing niece. Sagales’ wife died after Yolanda and he is still looking for two nieces and a nephew, and his 3 grandchildren.

Asked how he knew it was his niece, he pointed to his chest and said, “Alam ko. Alam ko (I know. I know).”

Posadas said the officials did not want to get people’s hopes up but acknowledged residents’ need to find their relatives’ remains two years after the disaster.

“It brings some sense of closure to finally find your loved one.” – Rappler.com