Modelling the Blast Environment and Relating this to Clinical Injury: Experience from the 7/7 Inquest

Abstract

On 2nd August 2010, the United Kingdom Surgeon General was instructed by Her Majesty’s Assistant Deputy Coroner for Inner West London (Rt Hon Lady Justice Hallett DBE) to provide Expert Witness Reports relating to the terrorist events of 7 July 2005 on the London Public Transport Network (see Chap. 7, Sect. ii). These Reports were required to review the evidence that had been gathered during the investigations into the event surrounding the bombings. Her Majesty’s Coroner asked a series of specific questions relating to the survivability and preventability (with respect to the medical interventions and care) of the deaths of many of the victims, and these had to be answered on an individual basis with a review of all of the relevant information. It was appreciated that the most appropriate and current experience of dealing with personnel injured in this type of event came from the UK Ministry of Defence Surgeon General’s Department who are experienced in dealing with combat-related injuries; particularly in the context of the current operations. This was also assisted by the fact that the UK Military Medical community already had a proven technique for the regular review of operational mortality and medical response [1, 2].