The eight victims of the M1 horror crash were so severely injured they had to be identified by their fingerprints, an inquest has heard.
The six men and two women killed when the minibus they were travelling on collided with two lorries were named during a hearing in Milton Keynes today.
The group, from Indian families, were travelling from Nottingham to London and were due to catch a Eurostar, when they suffered the horrific crash at Junction 14 of the motorway at Newport Pagnell, at 3.15am on August 26.
The eight victims of the M1 horror crash were so severely injured they had to be identified by their fingerprints, an inquest has heard (pictured, wreckage of the minibus is taken from the scene)
Lavanya and Karthikeyan Ramasubramanian, who lost their lives in the crash, with their five-year old son
Those who died in the crash were Cyriac Joseph, 52, a father-of-two from Nottingham, who was the minibus driver, Panneerselvam Annamalai, 63 and Subramaniyan Arachelvan, 58.
IT workers Rishi Rajeev Kumar, 27, Vivek Bhaskaran, 26, Karthikeyan Pugalur Ramasubramanian, 33, three IT workers, also died.
While the two female fatalities were: Tamilmani Arachelvan, 50 and Lavanyalakshmi Seetharaman, 32.
Their colleague Mano Ranjan Panneerselvam was named as the man who was critically injured.
Four other people who were in the minibus remain in hospital.
A man in his 30s is in a critical condition. A four-year-old girl, a woman in her 30s and a woman in her 50s remain in a serious but stable condition.
Cyriac Joseph, 52, a father-of-two from Nottingham, was driving the minibus when it collided with two lorries on the M1
The coroner’s officer Frederick Howe told the inquest that an articulated lorry was stationary in lane one, the minibus slowed and stopped and a second lorry pushed into the rear of the vehicle.
Four people were taken to hospital and the remaining eight in the minibus died.
The cause of death of all the victims was given as multiple injuries. They were identified via their fingerprints.
The coroner said: ‘I have signed the mortuary release forms for the bodies to be repatriated to India.
‘The inquest is suspended until proceedings in crown court are concluded.’
He added: ‘I would like to thank all those involved in recovering and identifying the dead who worked tirelessly to return them to families as soon as possible.
‘My condolences and sympathy to the families for this tragic accident.’
A Polish lorry driver, Ryszard Masierak, 31, has been remanded in custody charged with causing death by dangerous driving.
The group were travelling from Nottingham to London when they suffered the horrific crash by Junction 14 of the M1 at Newton Pagnell
A Polish lorry driver, Ryszard Masierak, 31, has been remanded in custody charged with causing death by dangerous driving (pictured, the wreckage of the minibus is taken away)
In addition, Mr Masierak from Evesham, Worcestershire, is accused of four counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and eight counts of causing death by careless driving while over the prescribed limit.
He allegedly gave a reading of 55 mg of alcohol per 100 ml of breath – the legal limit for driving is 35.
He is due to appear at Aylesbury crown court on September 26.
The other lorry driver David Wagstaff, 53, from Stoke-on-Trent, has been charged with eight counts of causing death by dangerous driving and four counts causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
He has been bailed to appear at Milton Keynes Magistrates’ Court on September 11.
Outside the coroner’s court Mathew John, Mr Joseph’s cousin, said: ‘It has been tragic for the family.
‘A memorial mass is being prepared for Friday or Saturday. The plan is to repatriate the bodies at the end of the week or early next week.’
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