NCJ Number
212822
Journal
Forensic Magazine Volume: 2 Issue: 6 Dated: December/January 2006 Pages: 8-11
Date Published
December 2006
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article provides background information on the creation of Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Teams (DMORTs) for regions of the country and describes the work performed by the Region VI DMORT in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina.
Abstract
The National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) conceived of DMORTs in the early 1980s because of its concern about the lack of standards for managing the dead in mass casualty events. NFDA subsequently purchased the components of the first portable morgue, called a Disaster Portable Morgue Unit (DPMU). DMORTs and DPMUs are now part of the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS), a section of the Operations Branch of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Response Division. When deployed by the NDMS, a DMORT works under the direction of local authorities to provide technical assistance in recovering, identifying, and processing the deceased. DMORT morgue operations are controlled by a regimented protocol capable of processing up to 140 bodies a day. The remains, which have been stored in body bags in refrigerated trucks, are first cleaned and decontaminated with a chlorine solution; assigned a number, folder, and escort; and then moved to forensic stations. A forensic pathologist examines, photographs, and X-rays the body at the first station, noting potential identifiers. Autopsies are sometimes necessary to determine identification through skeletal assessments. The dental examination and digital X-ray station is next in the processing, where odontologists record dental characteristics that can be matched with dental records. In the case of Katrina, the most difficult job was finding dental records that survived the storm and existed intact. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is another important identification tool now used by DMORTs for positive identification of remains. As with dental identification, mtDNA requires postmortem samples to compare with antemortem or family reference samples.