PHL Embassy: Saudi OFW body mess traced to employer

A mix-up where the family of an overseas Filipino worker who died in Saudi Arabia was sent the wrong body has been traced to the OFW's employer, the Philippine Embassy in Saudi Arabia said Sunday. The Embassy said the director of the mortuary where the body of Danneily Ubungen, who died in an acetylene blast along with two co-workers, was brought relied on data from authorities, who relied on the employer. "The Mortuary Director added that the mistake was on the part of the employer as it made an error in identifying the victims right after the incident and in the verification of the remains prior to shipment, as evidenced by the document signed and thum(b)printed by the latter’s representative," the Embassy said on its website. According to the Embassy, Ubungen's brother-in-law accompanied an Embassy representative to the mortuary and witnessed the discussion. It added that Ubungen's widow was also in contact with the employer, and has executed an affidavit "that the employer has been in contact with her and that she understands the situation." The Embassy had earlier said that it was informed by the Mortuary of the King Saud Medical Complex (KSMC) that all the papers of Ubungen were in order prior to shipment. Ubungen was a welder who died in a fire caused by an acetylene blast. Three Indian co-workers also perished in the accident. Saudi police and fire department authorities contacted the victims' employer and instructed it to send representatives to the hospital so the victims could be properly identified. "Based on the identification made by the representatives of the company, the hospital subsequently marked their medical files as such," the Embassy said, adding that KSMC Mortuary Officials also showed the Embassy the complete medical file of the late Ubungen. The Embassy said the mortuary explained that in all the documents, the reference number was the same: 03342. "It was pointed out that this means that on the part of the concerned Saudi authorities (the police, the fire department, the hospital and its morgue), there was no mistake as the reference number for the file of Mr. Ubungen was consistent from the beginning," it said. - KBK, GMA News