Abstract
Man-made and natural disasters causing multiple casualties and fatalities pose particular difficulties for emergency service staff due to their infrequent occurrence; the normality of a response to large numbers of simultaneous casualties and fatalities can overwhelm the already burdened systems and facilities. This chapter discusses the set-up phase of mortuary services enabling identification, post-mortem examination and dispatch of bodies following mass fatalities for three major incidents.
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Notes
- 1.
Interpol – the world’s largest international police organisation, with 192 member countries.
- 2.
DVI standards – the internationally accepted processes and procedures for recovering and identifying deceased people and human remains in multiple fatality incidents.
- 3.
Mass Fatality Coordination Group—Chaired by HM Coroner attendees include, but not limited to, Police, Senior Identification Manager, Senior Investigating Officer, Local Authority, Local Resilience Forum Representative, Emergency Planning, Director/Budget Holder, LA/NHS Mortuary Management, Forensic Pathologist.
- 4.
London Resilience ensures London’s preparedness in the event of emergencies and coordinates the activities of a wide range of organisations. It provides a link between emergency preparedness and resilience at the local and national levels.
- 5.
Mortuary Management Team comprises of HM Coroner/Coroner’s officer, Lead Pathologist, Lead APT, Facilities Manager, Police Operations Coordinator, Designated Individual, Documentation Officer, Ante Mortem Coordinator and other specialists as deemed necessary.
- 6.
The following principles outlined by Lord Justice Clarke in his report in 2001 form the bedrock of DVI processes:
· Provision of honest and, as far as possible, accurate information at all times and at every stage.
· Respect for the deceased and the bereaved.
· A sympathetic and caring approach throughout.
· The avoidance of mistaken identification.
References
Clarke A. Public inquiry into the identification of victims following major transport accidents: report of Lord justice Clarke, volume 1, CM 5012. London: TSO; 2001. p. 9.
Interpol. DVI Standards. 2019. https://www.interpol.int/How-we-work/Forensics/Disaster-Victim-Identification-DVI. Accessed 20 December 2019
The Civil Contingency Act. 2004. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/36/contents. Accessed 12 May 2019.
The Coroners Act. 1988. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/13/contents. Accessed 12 May 2019.
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Conway, M. (2020). Sudden Death: A Disaster Mortuary Response—Practitioner Perspective. In: Scott, T. (eds) Sudden Death: Intervention Skills for the Emergency Services. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-33140-5_10
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