The first body identified from the AirAsia Flight 8501 was the first victim to be returned to her family on Thursday. The identity of the first victim, Hayati Lutfiah Hamid, was confirmed using fingerprinting and other means. Her body was handed to her family in a dark casket covered with flowers and was given to her family at a brief ceremony in Surabaya, the Indonesian city from where the plane had taken off.

The 47-year-old woman, a teacher, was flying to Singapore with her 10-year-old daughter, husband and mother-in-law.

So far, only eight bodies have been recovered from the flight carrying 162 people. Search crews are currently battling heavy rain to recover another 150 bodies.