At the Taoyuan funeral parlor close to the crash site at Taipei's Chiang Kai-shek International Airport, charred bodies, most burned and dismembered beyond recognition, lay in coffins kept in refrigerated containers.

For Buddhists, Tuesday's rite, seven days after the October 31 crash, is believed to help speed up reincarnation.

An inquiry into the deadly Oct 31 crash is trying to determine why the experienced pilot of flight SQ 006 tried to take off on a runway that was closed for repairs during raging Typhoon Xangsane, or ``Elephant God'' in Chinese.

Smashing into a construction barrier on the runway, the aircraft's crash marked the first fatal accident in the airline's 28-year history.

Eighty-one people were injured and 16 walked away unhurt.

A week later the Boeing 747-400 wreckage still lay on the tarmac, a haunting reminder of the crash in which the aircraft exploded in a fireball with 179 people on board.

Its truncated tail section sat exposed on the tarmac, its purple economy class seats jutting out as metallic strips of the plane's hull flapped in the wind.

Debris was strewn everywhere. New shirts in clear plastic packages, photographs of a man cradling a child, possibly intended to have been gifts or take-home mementos.

Closed Runway, Safety, Weather, Lights

A probe, led by Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council (ASC), is investigating the extent of pilot error in the crash, and whether safety measures were adequate at the airport in Taoyuan county.

Airlines were notified of repair work on the closed runway in September, and a warning light and a barrier about 3300 feet down the runway marked the start of construction.

Centre lights -- green on the closed runway and white on the main one -- were illuminated on the night of the accident.

But it was still not known whether edge lights, which signify the runway is safe for take off, were on, investigators said.

Kay Yong, head of the ASC, said on tosday a ground car checking crash debris asked the airport control tower 39 minutes after the crash to turn on the edge lights on the runway, but it was not clear if the request was meant for the closed runway, or the active airstrip which runs parallel to it.

``It did not mention which runway it was,'' Yong said of the recorded request.

Investigators said earlier pilot C.K. Foong, a Malaysian with more than 11,000 hours of flying time, believed he was on the correct runway, which runs parallel to the closed strip.

Foong and his two first officers have been barred from leaving Taiwan during the investigation.

Investigators have also said nightfall and driving rain brought by Typhoon Xangsane probably had a hand in the accident.

The adverse weather cut visibility to 1640 to 1970 feet, making it impossible for tower controllers to see SQ 006 line up on the wrong strip, investigators said.

The airport has no ground radar, hindering the tower's ability to monitor taxiing planes.

Eerie Calm

An eerie calm surrounded the accident site today, but how different things must have been just seven days ago.

Most of the 82 dead were charred by the time they were found and it took days before they could be identified by relatives via dental records and DNA blood tests.

A Taiwan woman surnamed Hung whose brother-in-law died, said: ``His face had melted down and the top of his head was gone. We only confirmed it was him after DNA tests and dental records.''

``We went through body after body and some had their upper arms raised against their faces like they were shielding themselves from the fire.''

Among the few whose facial features were distinguishable, some had their lips drawn back, a sign of the terror and pain that consumed them in the final moments of their lives.

The airline, which has called for a hard look at airports' safety standards, offered a US$32.8 million compensation package to families of victims at the weekend.

Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration defended the airport, saying runways, signs and lights were up to international requirements and the entire runway was not blocked off because it was being used as a taxiway.