Jakarta – A young woman who joined a technical college just three years ago as an electrochemical student has become the first identified victim of Lion Air Flight JT-610.
Friends are mourning Jannatun Dewi, 24, on her Facebook page after Lion Air officially handed over her remains to her family.
“The remains of the passenger, late Jannatun Shintya Dewi (female) has been flown to Surabaya at 05:15 WIB (Western Indonesia Time), and has arrives Juanda International Airport, East Jawa at 06:10hours,” said Lion Air in a statement.
“The representative of Lion Air Management had officially handed over the remains of Jannatun Shintya Dewi to her family.”
“On 31 October, the Disaster Victim Identification team of the Republic of Indonesia Police (DVI) has confirmed the identity of one of the JT-610 passengers as Jannatun Shintya Dewi (female),” said the airline.
“The confirmation was announced after a matching result of the forensic and ante-mortem tests with DNA data that had previously been given by the family to the Indonesian National Police’s DVI team.”
“Lion Air has expressed their deepest condolences to all the family and friends of the late Jannatun Shintya Dewi.”
Lion Air has paid waiting allowance, grief money and compensation for her death according to regulations, it said.
Search and rescue officials are struggling with strong currents in a bid to find the remains of the aircraft which plunged into the sea just 13 minutes after takeoff from Jakarta.
Some reports indicated the black boxes had been found but there was no confirmation of this from the search and rescue organization BASARNAS.
The organization had said earlier that pings had been heard from an area just a few hundred metres from the last contact with Flight JT610.
As well, BASARNAS said a total of 56 body bags had been taken to a police identification centre.
