le principal poste d’alimentation électrique a explosé.

  Les puits s’assèchent rendant problématique les opérations nécessitant un approvisionnement important en eau.

  La population locale est peu coopérante concernant les infos qu’elle communique sur les thaïlandais portés disparus.

  La population craint une pollution des cours d’eau tout proches par les épidémies et les produits chimiques utilisés. Cela a contraint la police a changé de place les containers.

  Certains policiers demanderaient 4000 baths (200 euros) aux locaux pour rendre les corps aux familles. Corruption niée par le général Nopadol.

  Toutes les prélèvements refaits par la police respectent les normes internationales selon le Général Nopadol.

Nopadol’s corpse ID centre faces hurdles. (by ACHADTAYA CHUENNIRAN NAUVARAT SUKSAMRAN)

“The police-led Thai Tsunami Victims Identification (TTVI) centre is dealing with many problems in identifying corpses at Wat Yanyao and Wat Bang Muang temples in Phangnga’s Takua Pa district, where hundreds of bodies are being kept.

After police legal adviser Pol Gen Nopadol Somboonsap took over the job from Khunying Porntip Rojanasunan, the Central Institute of Forensic Science deputy director, on Feb 3, his police team has encountered numerous obstacles that have delayed victim identification.

’’A power blackout caused by an explosion at the main power transformer posed a major problem to our work. Artesian wells are also drying up and this makes it difficult for us to wash corpses or maintain their condition,’’ said Pol Col Khemmarin Hatsiri, head of the TTVI centre at Wat Yanyao.

Pol Gen Nopadol complained of a lack of cooperation from local people.

’’Local residents have supplied little information about their family members killed by the tsunami to our team,’’ he said. He had initially set a target of identifying 50 corpses a day but the team has managed to identify only 30 a day so far.

He said a batch of 50 police cadets set to complete their education this year would be sent to Takua Pa district next week to try to educate residents about the necessity of providing any possible proof of victim identity to the authorities.

Apparently, there were also fears among locals that the corpses might contaminate water sources near to Wat Yanyao and Wat Bang Muang.

At Wat Yanyao, almost 600 corpses were being kept in containers. The site is located near a large canal.

About 700 corpses are stored at Wat Bang Muang and the area where police perform autopsies is also near a canal.

’’Local residents are afraid rain may wash fluid and diseases from the corpses and chemicals used on the bodies into the water,’’ said Chainarong Maharae, chairman of the tambon Bang Muang administration organisation.

Rising fears among locals have forced the police team to lift containers above the ground to prevent seepage of chemicals and corpse lymph fluid.

Khunying Potjaman Shinawatra, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s wife, is to visit the centre to discuss the problems.

’’If possible, we want all corpses to be transferred to Mai Khao morgue in Phuket as our disaster victim identification (DVI) centre there is well equipped. There are three standard lab rooms there. Many corpses at the DVI centre have already been released to their families,’’ said Pol Gen Nopadol.

He denied persistent rumours police had demanded 4,000 baht from families of victims wanting to reclaim the bodies of their loved ones.

He said his team has received sufficient funding from the state to cover all costs.

However, any officer found to to have asked for money from relatives of victims would face legal action, he said.

He insisted his forensic team has strictly abided by international standards. Corpses would not be released if they were not properly identified.

’’We have to conduct new autopsies on all the corpses as some bodies have little information. Some corpses had many numbers [marked on them by the old team]. Some share the same number,’’ said Pol Gen Nopadol.

All identification procedures must be strictly followed to prevent criminals exploiting any loopholes. Relatives might claim that family members who were criminals were among the victims of the tsunami, he said.