Ministry of Justice: Christchurch earthquake – update 5
Wednesday 2 March 2011

Chief Coroner Judge Neil MacLean said he has come away from his visit to the temporary mortuary at Burnham Military Camp full of admiration and praise for the more than 200 people who are working to return victims of the Christchurch earthquake to their families.

“To get a facility like that up and running in the timeframe they did is incredible and a great credit to all the different agencies involved.
“People are working in the most trying of circumstance but are using all the experience gained from events like the Australian bushfires to do a magnificent job.

“The scale of what they are dealing with could be overwhelming but everyone has stepped up to the mark and got stuck in.
“Some are getting to the point where we need to rest them but we have plenty of back-up to allow that to happen and will continue this grim job for however long it takes,” Judge MacLean said.

Coronial services throughout the rest of the country continue to be dealt with through normal processes.
More information is available at: www.justice.govt.nz/courts/coroners-court/christchurch-earthquake

ENDS

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