Mourners pay silent tribute at a joint memorial altar for victims of the Jeju Air crash, set up in front of Seoul City Hall, Thursday. Yonhap

Investigators working on the Jeju Air crash have identified the owners of more than 200 items from over 1,000 collected at the crash site. Among these are unburned items, including luggage with name tags, which are set to be returned to the families soon.

According to sources on Wednesday, a joint investigation team consisting of police, firefighters and special disaster rescue units from the Special Warfare Command has been analyzing personal effects retrieved from the scene.

Despite the devastating crash that left only a few victims' bodies intact, the team managed to recover and identify many items as the victims' final possessions.

Most of the identified items are suitcases with name tags, while other items, such as clothes, shoes, and pens, are still under review. Items without clear identifying markers will undergo further DNA testing, which may delay their return to families.

The team also retrieved partially intact mobile phones belonging to some victims. These phones will undergo forensic analysis in the presence of the victims' families, with police planning to use the data for investigative purposes.

Meanwhile, belongings deemed crucial for uncovering the cause of the crash are being analyzed by authorities. Families of the victims had previously requested updates on the existence of personal effects.

A team official said, "There may still be more belongings at the site, and we are conducting a thorough search." Some items may be shown to the families soon, he added.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.