Five more quake victims formally identified

Five people identified by the chief coroner were all in the CTV building at the time of the Christchurch earthquake. Photo / Sarah Ivey

The remains of five more victims of the February 22 Christchurch earthquake have been identified, the chief coroner has announced.

The Disaster Victim Identification team has presented enough evidence on five of the previously unidentified victims of the earthquake for Coroner Sue Johnson to make a positive identification.

They are:

• Matthew Lyle Beaumont, age 31 (male), of Christchurch
• Jin-Yan Leng, age 30 (female), of China
• Xiujuan Xu, age 47 (female), of China
• Di-Di Zhang, age 23 (female), of China
• Xioa-Li Zhou, age 26 (female), of China

The five were all among nine unidentified known victims who were in the CTV building at the time of the earthquake and were formally pronounced dead at the first cornial inquest held last month by Chief Coroner, Judge Neil MacLean.

"The work carried out by the Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team is incredibly difficult and painstaking so these latest identifications are a wonderful testament to their persistence and professionalism," Judge MacLean said.

The identifications were made as a result of the ongoing work of the DVI team using information including dental records, anthropological evidence and personal property details, some of which has only recently been obtained.

Head of the DVI operation, Inspector Mike Wright, said forensic efforts to identify the remaining victims has continued unabated since the earthquake.

"This has been a complex and time-consuming process but we have continued to focus on achieving identification wherever possible," he said.

"With the arrival of new information from overseas we have been able to formally confirm identifications in these cases, which is a great result for the DVI team, but more importantly for the families," Inspector Wright said.

Inspector Mark Harrison, head of the police Family Liaison team said the identifications will help the families of the victims find closure.

"The coroner's findings, based on the available evidence, were an important step for families, helping them to move on with the practicalities of dealing with the death of a loved one," he said.

"Now with confirmation of formal identification, the families have additional certainty about their loved ones which will be of immense comfort."

Meanwhile, Judge MacLean has announced Waikato Coroner Gordon Matenga will hear evidence on 106 of the victims from the CTV building at a second inquest at the Riccarton Racecourse from June 13 to 15.

The hearings will be grouped, with evidence on 12 people believed to have been killed at The Clinic and eight other victims from the building to be heard on Monday, 13 staff from CTV and eight staff from Kings College language school to be heard on Tuesday and 65 students of the College to be heard on Wednesday.

- Herald Online