A body pulled from burned debris after the March 11, 2011, Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami has finally been identified as that of a 63-year-old man, according to the Miyagi Prefectural Police.

The police said Thursday that the charred body was found in May 2011 in an area in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, that had been severely damaged by fire.

He had lived alone and there was no report of a missing person from his family or relatives.

According to the Mainichi Shimbun, the police started to make a list in January of people who did not resume receiving public assistance after the disasters, and they eventually came upon the missing man.

Before that, they had released information to the public about what the man was wearing when he was found, though no one came forward with information.

The police found his relatives based on his family register and confirmed that their DNA and that of his remains matched. The remains were handed over to the relatives on Wednesday, the Mainichi reported.

The police said there are still 16 unidentified bodies in Miyagi Prefecture alone, according to the newspaper.