Search for crash victims until Jan. 2
Search for crash victims until Jan. 2
JAKARTA (JP): A Singapore-Indonesia rescue team has set Jan.
2, 1998 as the last day of their search for victims and wreckage
from a Singapore SilkAir Boeing 737-300 which crashed in the
estuary of the Musi river in southern Sumatra on Dec. 19.
Antara quoted Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto
as saying in Palembang on Saturday that rescuers had only found
wreckage of only 10 percent of the plane, along with human
remains, pieces of clothing and other personal belongings.
Two dredgers will arrive at the crash site by Wednesday at the
latest to help search for victims and the plane's submerged
fuselage.
The aircraft's flight data recorder, which was recovered
Saturday, was to be sent to the United States for decoding
yesterday.
Haryanto said the device would be taken to the National
Transportation Safety Board in Washington by Oetarjo Diran,
chairman of Indonesia's Aircraft Accident Investigation
Commission.
The recovered flight data recorder monitors critical
instrument readings, including flight path, altitude, speed and
direction.
The flight data recorder was the first major find for
investigators, eight days after the 10-month-old jet crashed on a
scheduled flight from Jakarta to Singapore.
All 104 passengers and crew on board are feared dead.
The recorder was reportedly intact and in good condition
despite having been submerged for eight days, the Suara Pembaruan
afternoon daily reported yesterday.
The search continues for a second vital device the cockpit
voice recorder which records radio transmissions and all sounds
in the cockpit, such as the pilots' voices and engine noises.
Divers have been unable to recover a single body intact, and
investigators are planning a mass grave for the human remains
which have been recovered.
Haryanto said the remains would be buried in Palembang or near
the crash site 65 kilometers away in Sungsang, a small fishing
village.
Thick layers of silt and the fast currents of the Musi river
have hampered divers' efforts to salvage the aircraft wreckage.
Investigators have been unwilling to speculate on the cause of
the tragedy, but several villagers near the crash site reported
hearing explosions before the plane went down. (10)