DFA: Relatives of missing Pinoys due to Myanmar quake submit DNA

Relatives of two Filipinos who are still missing due to the magnitude 7.7 earthquake in Myanmar last March 28 have sent their DNAs to authorities in hopes of speeding up the search for their loved ones, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

DFA spokesperson and Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said the turnover of said DNA happened last week.

“It (DNA of the relatives of missing Filipinos) was submitted to the NBI,” de Vega told GMA News Online in a text message.

“Pinalipad namin ang mga kamag-anak sa Maynila at dinala namin sa NBI. These relatives hail from Negros Oriental, near the province’s capital of Dumaguete,” he added.

(We flew them to Manila and accompanied them to the NBI. They are from Negros Oriental and reside near the province's capital of Dumaguete.)

De Vega said the relatives also returned to Dumaguete on the same day, and that all of their expenses for their one day-trip were covered by the DFA.

The DFA earlier confirmed the death of at least two other Filipinos due to the Myanmar quake.

The magnitude 7.7 earthquake in Myanmar has left over 3,600 people dead, according to a Reuters report last April 18. —KG, GMA Integrated News