Ugandan minister flies into crash site to investigate Garang's death
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-08-05 14:28

Ugandan Minister of Internal Affairs Ruhakana Rugunda has left for the crash scene of the ill- fated presidential M1-172 helicopter to beef up investigations into the mishap that killed Sudanese first vice president John Garang and 13 others, local newspaper The New Vision reported Friday.

Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary Julius Onen was quoted as saying that Rugunda flew off on Thursday morning with a team of 11 experts including pathologists, chemists and security personnel.

"We chartered a 19-seater for them. They will spend a few days there during the investigations," Onen said.

Before his departure, Rugunda said "the bodies are not easy to identify. A lot of work needs to be done in terms of identification. The identification process is still going on. The answers are going to be provided by the process of identification and the bodies will be brought as soon as they are ready."

The remains of the seven Ugandan crew members will be flown home once preliminary investigations into the accident have been concluded, according to Uganda Minister of State for Information Nsaba Buturo.

On Tuesday, a team of three Ugandan aviation experts left for southern Sudan to investigate the tragic helicopter crash and they would be joined by their counterparts from Sudan and other countries and international organizations.

Garang died on Saturday in a tragic helicopter crash while flying back to Sudan from Uganda after meeting President Yoweri Museveni.

It is reported that Uganda's presidential helicopter AF 605 Type M1-172 hit a rock and crashed owing to bad weather south of New Site on the Uganda-Sudan border.

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