5 Passengers Of Sriwijaya Air SJ-182 Have Been Identified, 2 Of Them Are Children

Press conference at the Police Hospital regarding developments. identification of victims of the Sriwijaya Air SJ-182 aircraft (Wardhany Tsa Tsia / VOI)

JAKARTA - The National Police's Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team again identified five passengers on the Sriwijaya Air SJ-182 plane that crashed into the waters of the Thousand Islands. Of the five passengers identified, there were two children named Fathima Ashalina M (2) and Athar Rizky Riawan (8).

"For today, the DVI Team has identified five victims," said Karo Penmas, Police Public Relations Division, Brigadier General Rusdi Hartono in a press conference held at the Kramat Jati Police Hospital, East Jakarta, Monday, January 18.

Apart from successfully identifying the two children who took part in the unlucky flight, the DVI Team also succeeded in identifying three passengers, namely Didi Gunardi (49) who was an extra pilot; Sriwijaya Air SJ-182 flight attendants, Gita Lestari (36); Rahmania Ekananda (39).

So, currently the number of passengers on the unlucky plane on the Jakarta-Pontianak route that was successfully identified has totaled 34.

There is also the identification process of the five passengers, said the Head of the DNA Laboratory of the National Police Health Center, Kombes Ratna, which was carried out using the DNA matching method.

"Didik Gunardi was identified with comparative DNA from his biological child. Then Atta Rizki, identified with comparative DNA from his biological father," he said at the same press conference.

Meanwhile, Gita Lestari, who is a flight attendant, was identified through her son's DNA. "Then Fatima, the comparative data came from the biological father, Rahmania Eka Nanda, with the comparative data from the biological mother," he said.

"So for Fatimah and Rahmania Ekananda one family, so thank God both of them have been identified," he added.

Previously reported, the Sriwijaya Air SJ-182 plane on the Jakarta-Pontianak route had lost contact in the Thousand Islands shortly after taking off from Soekarno Hatta Airport on Saturday, January 9, 2020. Furthermore, the authorities confirmed if the plane crashed around Male Island and Lancang Island, Thousand Islands.

In total, the plane carried 62 people, including 12 crew members and 50 passengers consisting of 40 adult passengers, seven children and three babies.