Boy loses parents, younger siblings

Rauhan, the only surviving member of his family, flew in from Dubai on Sunday with his uncle to trace the bodies of his father, mother, five-year-old brother and three-and-a-half- year-old sister at Government Wenlock Hospital mortuary here.

Mohamed Ismail, his uncle, identified Rauhan’s mother from among the badly charred remains.  A fatigued Rauhan, however, opted not to enter the mortuary. DNA experts on Sunday evening took Rauhan’s blood samples to establish the identities of his father and siblings as no unclaimed bodies matched the specifications given by Rauhan, his uncle said.

Ironically, Rauhan’s family  members were rushing here to attend the funeral of his grandmother, who died on May 21. The Government Wenlock Hospital, which witnessed a swarm of kith and kin of the victims since Saturday, was deserted on Monday as hospital staff were seen cleaning waste in the mortuary premises. Despite the emotional stress, relatives kept their composure, realising they would have to maintain restrain even when two or three claimants came for a single body.