Families hope quake inquest finally brings legal closure

The inquest will officially record the deaths of nine people. Photo / Geoff Sloan

Families who lost loved ones in the Christchurch earthquake but have not been able to get confirmation of their deaths are looking forward to getting some closure at an inquest this month.

The inquest is expected to officially record the deaths of nine people in the disaster, in cases where not enough remains could be recovered to identify the victims.

Among them is Elsa Torres De Frood, 53, who was director of studies at the King's Education language school in the collapsed Canterbury Television building.

Her brother, Gerardo Torres, said the inquest would provide closure in a legal sense - getting a death certificate and freeing up his sister's assets.

But he said he and Mrs Frood's twin daughters in Australia still felt "empty" without anything left of her.

"You can imagine things, but you can't be at peace because you don't know what has happened," Mr Torres said. "A lot of people told me my sister didn't suffer, but your mind is free to think. Sometimes I have dreams seeing my sister screaming in the fire."

The Chief Coroner, Judge Neil MacLean, said the inquest in Christchurch from May 16 to 18 would hear the best available evidence concerning the nine unidentified victims, and possibly of the 172 identified victims if time permitted.

"We've come to a point where some families are facing a worst-case scenario where no trace will be found of their loved ones so we need to find a way forward for them," Judge MacLean said.

He has suggested a mass grave or monument of some sort to jointly remember those unidentified victims.

Mr Torres welcomed that idea.

Judge MacLean said it would be some time before any decision was made on what would happen to the unidentified remains.

Meanwhile, four deaths which may have been related to the quake have been reported to the coroner and could be considered in separate inquests.

In some cases, the quake could have "inflamed" existing medical conditions, a spokesman for the Chief Coroner said.