VIDEO: 340 bodies unclaimed in Pta mortuaries
The department is calling on families and relatives of missing persons to visit Forensic Pathology Service (FPS) mortuaries in the province to check if their loved ones are not part of the unclaimed and unidentified bodies.
A total of 340 unclaimed bodies are still lying in Pretoria mortuaries.
The bodies are resting at the Gauteng Forensic Pathology service mortuaries in Bronkhorstspruit, Ga-Rankuwa and Pretoria on Dr Savage Road.
The bodies still await identification at these facilities, said the Gauteng Department of Health (GDoH) spokesperson Tshepo Shawa.
Shawa said the department was calling on families and relatives of missing persons to visit Forensic Pathology Service (FPS) mortuaries in the province to check if their loved ones were not part of the unclaimed and unidentified bodies.
“There are 938 unclaimed and unidentified bodies across 11 FPS mortuaries that families and relatives have not come forth to claim.”
The unidentified bodies are as follows:
– Bronkhorstspruit (8),
– Ga-Rankuwa (69),
– Pretoria (263),
– Germiston (127),
– Heidelberg (9),
– Sebokeng (94),
– Springs (49),
– Carletonville (45),
– Diepkloof (49),
– Johannesburg (187) and
– Roodepoort (38).
MEC for Health and Wellness, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko, said that it was concerning that the number of unclaimed and identified bodies was increasing by the day.
“There are families who have been looking for their loved ones not knowing where they are. We encourage them to visit FPS mortuaries to check if their loved ones are not part of the unclaimed bodies; and if that is the case, they can give them a proper burial,” said Nkomo-Ralehoko.
She said a family member or relative who wishes to identify their loved one should have their original Identity Document (ID), ID of the deceased or birth certificate if the deceased is a child.
“If the deceased is a foreign national, a passport, asylum seeker certificate or a letter from the country of origin confirming who the deceased is and to whom the remains should be handed over is needed.
“Once a body of a deceased is not identified or claimed within seven days, fingerprints are sent to the SAPS Criminal Record Centre for identification and to the Department of Home Affairs for matching with their records.”
Nkomo-Ralehoko said if the identification process was successful, the next of kin would be made aware of the deceased through the SAPS’s investigating officer for final release and burial or cremation.
“If the body is still unidentified 30 days after exhausting means of identification including the use of fingerprints, pauper burial processes are used for the final burial of the deceased.”
The department said it would continue trying to trace family members.
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