Identification of Stilfontein mine bodies delayed by decomposition

The identification of the bodies of illegal mineworkers who had been retrieved from an abandoned mine shaft in Stilfontein in the North West could take some time.

The Provincial Health Department says autopsies on 80 bodies have been concluded, but some of the bodies retrieved from underground were heavily decomposed.

Forensic pathologist Dr Kgolane Kgoete says this often prolongs the postmortem and identification process.

”The challenge is first of all if you have to identify any pathology injuries the decomposition obviously interferes with what you’re going to find. The pathology that will be there will be modified because of decomposition and injuries will not be visible. Obviously in identifying a person the normal identified facial features will not be relevant in that case so we need scientific methods to identify, like fingerprints, DNA, special identifying features.”