ISLAMABAD: The bodies of the three Pakistani-American physicians who died in a plane crash on Oct 12 — will be handed over to their families by the morgue of Illinois' Cook County on Thursday, Faisal Tirmizi, Pakistan's counsel general in Chicago told Dawn.

Tirmizi said the parents of Dr Tauseef Rehman will reach Chicago Thursday afternoon from Saudi Arabia.

The family has decided to bury the deceased in Chicago rather than taking his body back to Pakistan, Tirmizi said.

Tirmizi further stated that the burial of Dr Tauseef will take place on Friday (tomorrow), whereas the funeral of Dr Ali Asghar Kanchwala and Dr Maria Javed will take place on Thursday (today).

The Consul General of Pakistan will be representing the Ambassador of Pakistan in the funeral proceedings.

The three top physicians, pulmonologist Dr Ali Kanchwala, cardiologist Dr Maria Javed and neurosurgeon Dr Tauseef Rehman died when their private twin-engine Beechcraft Baron crashed on Monday night in Palos Hills, Illinois.

The United States Federal Aviation Administration said their plane had crashed shortly after taking-off from Chicago Midway Airport.