1953 flood victim identified using dna

DutchNews.nl, February 23, 2015

More than 60 years after massive floods tore through southern Dutch coastal areas, one of the last un-named victims has been formally identified. 

The woman was buried in a grave in Yerseke but has now been given a name after dna sampling, police said on Monday. The dna was matched to that of a 77-year-old man who was her son. 

Police re-opened their investigation into 31 unidentified flood victims in 2013 by exhuming their graves and taking dna samples using modern techniques. Around 100 people are still listed as missing after the floods, which killed 1,836 people in the Netherlands. 

Police spokesman Ed Kraszewski said he hoped this success would encourage other people who lost family in the floods to come forward. Around 50 people have so far done so, he said.

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