An Austrian pathologist has said that the identities of the victims of Saturday's Alpine funicular railway disaster will not be known for at least three to four weeks. Edith Bauer said that the remains of the 159 people on the train were so badly charred that DNA testing was the only means of identification. The identification will be carried out in Salzburg. 46 bodies have now been retrieved from the tunnel.
Accident investigators were able to enter the tunnel for the first time only last night. The disaster happened near the village of Kaprun, 220 miles west of Vienna. Conditions inside the tunnel have hampered the rescue operation, with workers having to change shifts every hour due to poisonous fumes and heat. It is expected to take up to a week to remove the bodies. The French Government has ordered inspections of its funicular railways in the wake of the disaster.
