4 More Victims of Air Crash Named

The names of four more victims of Alaska Airlines Flight 261 were released Saturday, bringing the total number of publicly identified victims to 19.

So far, medical examiners have identified remains of 42 of the 88 people killed in the crash. The names of the other 23 identified victims will be released after their families have been contacted, said Julie Frey, a spokeswoman for the Ventura County medical examiner’s office.

The victims named Saturday are Michael Bernard, 30, of Seattle; Naomi Laigo, 53, of Fairfield, Calif.; Charlene Sipe, 53, of Brier, Wash.; and Morris Thompson, 60, of Fairbanks, Alaska.

Medical examiners use fingerprints, dental comparisons, tattoos and personal effects, such as wallets, jewelry and clothing to identify the remains. They also use anthropology examinations, which consider body size, gender, age estimates and unique features.

No human remains have been discovered since Monday, Frey said, and the medical examiner’s office has no indication that more of the MD-83’s fuselage will be recovered from the ocean floor. If more parts of the plane are recovered, additional human remains could be brought up with them, she said.