Death toll rises to 12 as 4 more bodies recovered this afternoon
The death toll from the recent maritime tragedy In East New Britain Province has risen to 12 after four more bodies were recovered from the Tigak Group of Islands early this morning and brought to the Kavieng Provincial Hospital morgue, Friday afternoon.
The latest recoveries were made at about 6:00 a.m., today, with one body found on Kulinus Island, one on Upuas Island, and two on Tapi Island.
Chairman of the Tapi Community Villagers told NBC News, they recovered the bodies, between 6 and 8am today.
Three boats later transported the four bodies to the Kavieng Provincial Hospital beachfront, where they were received by Provincial Health Authority staff, police officers, security personnel, hospital workers and members of the public.
The bodies were immediately transferred to the hospital morgue.
The latest recoveries bring the confirmed death toll to 12, while officials continue to appeal for public support and cooperation as the operation enters its final phase.
Five bodies recovered on Thursday night
Five more bodies were recovered on Thursday from Upuas and Enang islands in the Tigak group of New Ireland Province as search and recovery operations continued.
The bodies were found by locals from the two islands with assistance from the provincial search and recovery team.
Locals who accompanied the bodies to Kavieng told NBC News that three of the victims were discovered by school-aged children on a reef at Upuas Island, while the other two bodies had washed ashore on Enang Island.
Recovery efforts were briefly hampered after two boats carrying search and recovery personnel from Djaul developed engine problems while responding to alerts from authorities on the ground.
Two additional boats carrying teams from the Provincial Disaster Office and the New Ireland Provincial Health Authority were deployed from Kavieng at around 4pm. They returned at about 10pm with the five bodies.
Upon arrival in Kavieng, the bodies were received by staff from the New Ireland Provincial Health Authority before being transported to the Kavieng Hospital morgue.
Upuas Island resident Ori Dami told NBC News that some of the bodies were bloated and disfigured. Locals used canvas to ferry the bodies ashore and placed them on makeshift beds while awaiting repatriation arrangements.
The identities of the five bodies have not yet been confirmed and will only be verified when they return to East New Britain.
