Earthquake victims in Venezuela identified through dental and fingerprint records

Two major earthquakes, with magnitudes of 7,2 and 7,5, which occurred in Venezuela on 24 Haziran, have deeply shaken the country, especially the capital Caracas and La Guaira state. This devastating natural disaster caused the collapse of numerous buildings and massive damage to the infrastructure, resulting in the loss of thousands of lives. According to unofficial data, more than 3 thousand people lost their lives at the scene, and over 50 thousand people have been recorded as missing. Because the scale of the disaster is so immense, the victim identification process has presented the country's forensic medicine system with an extremely tough challenge. Authorities are conducting a meticulous process both to ease the pain of the bereaved families and to correctly advance the legal procedures.

The identification process of the disaster victims is being carried out centrally by the National Forensic Medicine and Forensic Sciences Service (Senamecf). The institution undertakes vital duties such as the collection of bodies, conducting forensic medical evaluations, and issuing official death certificates. In the identification procedures, high accuracy rates are attempted to be achieved by using especially dental records and fingerprints. Davenio Velásquez, President of the Professional Association of the Funeral Services Industry (Asoproinfu), stated that during the period when these methods are applied, the possibility of victims being identified in the future is preserved even after their burial procedures are completed. This situation ensures that the hope of families reuniting with their loved ones continues with new evidence or records that may be obtained in the future, even if the burial process is completed.

Due to the high number of victims, the burial and cremation processes have not been limited to a single region, but have been organized spread across different states. While it was announced that burials in La Guaira are done individually in single graves, the Güney Mezarlığı in Caracas has also been opened to service in order to increase capacity. Furthermore, many funeral homes and crematoriums in the capital region and across the country have been mobilized to support this massive operation. To speed up the completion of the procedures, some bodies are being transferred to Maracay in Aragua state, and Valencia and San Joaquín regions in Carabobo state. With the support of the Libertador municipality at the Güney Mezarlığı in Caracas, approximately 400 grave sites have been rearranged and made available for emergency needs.

In the public process, Senamecf provides all identification and documentation procedures it carries out during the emergency period completely free of charge. Authorities emphasized that a special fund has been created for families without any financial income and that funeral expenses are covered by this fund. It has been guaranteed that in this disaster, no one will be left out and all those in need will benefit from state resources. On the other hand, families who wish to receive private funeral services with their own means are also granted this freedom. This approach enables the redirection of limited economic resources to the families who need them most and ensures a fair distribution of resources.

Families searching for their missing relatives are invited to contact the centers designated by Senamecf to obtain information and track the process. The central building in Bello Monte, Caracas, and the temporary service point established in Silos del Puerto in La Guaira state are accepting applications from families. In these centers, DNA samples, old fingerprints, and dental records collected from families are being compared with the existing database to make matches. Authorities state that this process requires patience and solidarity, and that every single record and piece of data is of vital importance for identification. The Venezuelan people, on the other hand, are trying to heal their wounds during these difficult days with the extensive efforts of both state institutions and the national solidarity network.