Insiko bones still in limbo

By Mike Gordon
Advertiser Staff Writer

The derelict tanker was found and scuttled, its rescued crew sent home and the once-stranded dog that stirred animal lovers around the world — Hokget — is enjoying a pampered pet quarantine on Kaua'i.

But the bones of the only person killed when the refueling tanker Insiko 1907 caught fire remain in limbo. And that has left Susan Siu, chief investigator with the Honolulu medical examiner's office, quietly seething.

"It is another life lost, and nobody seems to care," Siu said. "They only care about the dog."

Siu took custody of the remains in May, but she cannot positively identify them even though the only crewman unaccounted for was Nian Qihui of China.

Nian was in the engine room March 13 when the ship caught fire, and that's where the bones were found.

"That's who they said he is, but I don't know yet," Siu said. "I doubt if we ever will."

The medical examiner identifies remains by using detailed dental records. The bones found include teeth.

But the Los Angeles-based consulate general for the People's Republic of China told Siu that dentists in China do not keep such records.

Consul Liang Zhengquan said he needs positive identification before the remains can return to Nian's family in Fujian province. "They should have him cremated and send the ashes back," Liang said.

The best information Liang could offer Siu was a description of recent dental work. She said that wouldn't be good enough.

Because the bones have burn damage from the ship fire, Siu doubts that a DNA analysis will work either.

"This one is going to be a hard one," she said.

If the bones are never identified, they will be cremated and the ashes scattered.

Then the sole victim of the Insiko fire will forever be known as No. 02060.

Reach Mike Gordon at mgordon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8012.