152 bodies extricated from crash site

Rescuers have recovered 152 bodies from the wreckage of the Air India Express flight, which crashed at Bajpe Airport today, a top police official said.

Rescuers have recovered 152 bodies from the wreckage of the Air India Express flight, which crashed at Bajpe Airport today, a top police official said.

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Forty three bodies have been identified, Commissioner of Police, Mangalore, Seemanth Kumar Singh said.

Relatives of the victims were finding it difficult to identify the bodies as they were charred beyond recognition, he said.

"All efforts are being made to remove the remaining six bodies", he said.

Fifteen rescue teams assisted by local volunteers are leaving no stone unturned to trace the bodies, which could have been entangled in the bushes or even fallen into the ravine, Additional Superintendent of Police Ramesh Kumar said.

The hospitals are milling with the near and dear ones of the survivors and the dead. A majority of the victims were Keralites.