THE bodies of two of the victims of the Charlton train crash remain unclaimed in a Worcester mortuary nearly three weeks after the tragedy.

Police say they have so far been unsuccessful in contacting relatives of young Iraqi Kurd Soran Karim, aged 23, and 28-year-old Indian Satish Kumar.

Only 46-year-old Islam Ahmed, a father of six, whose wife and family had followed him to Britain from Bangladesh several years ago, has been taken by his family.

Inquiries

"We are carrying out inquiries with the help of the Indian High Commission and the Red Cross to try to notify the next of kin of the losses," said Det Insp Huw Jones, who is heading the investigation.

"We anticipate finding relatives of Mr Kumar soon, but finding family members of Mr Karim will take a lot longer because of the current situation in Iraq."

The three men were killed when the minibus in which they were travelling was in collision with a high-speed train on Monday, July 7.

Seven immigrant farm workers were on the bus when the incident happened at Pools Crossing at White House farm.

The van's driver, a 24-year-old Iraqi called Adnan Karim, has been charged with three counts of manslaughter.