The Black Saturday Bushfires
VIFM’s Role in Victorian Bushfires Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) Process
Medical and scientific experts at the VIFM played a vital role in DVI processes, assisting the State Coroner and the Victoria Police DVI Commander, who have overall responsibility for positively identifying deceased victims in a multiple casualty event, such as the devastating Black Saturday Victorian bushfires in 2009. VIFM staff, who are trained and experienced in human identification techniques were involved with the DVI processes in the following ways:
At the Scene
VIFM provided medical and scientific experts, on request from Victoria Police, to attend at the bushfires scenes when human remains were recovered. These experts are: forensic pathologists (specialised doctors); forensic anthropologists (scientists who specialise in examination of skeletal remains) forensic odontologists (dentists), together with forensic technical staff.
Mortuary
The VIFM’s mortuary and related facilities were designed and built in anticipation of having to respond to disasters. However, due to the number of people who died in the bushfires, rapidly assembled temporary refrigerated rooms were added to the existing mortuary facility.
The mortuary at the VIFM, including the additional temporary mortuary facilities, is where the human remains recovered from the bushfires were admitted and kept in secure refrigerated rooms before being examined. The examinations were undertaken as soon as possible after admission and included: photography, radiography (using a CT scanner) fingerprinting (if possible), autopsy (if applicable) and anthropological (skeletal) and dental assessments. Samples may have been taken for toxicology testing.
The VIFM DVI teams recorded all the information available from these examinations for later comparison.
Medical and Dental Information
VIFM forensic doctors and dentists were involved in collecting and assessing ante-mortem (before death) medical and dental information about the people who are believed to have died in the fires. This information was sourced from the treating dentists and medical practitioners, with the help of next of kin. This information was included as part of larger files of ante-mortem information collected by the Victoria Police ante-mortem team.
DNA
VIFM’s molecular biology (DNA) laboratory was also involved in the identification process. Samples taken in the mortuary were used to obtain DNA. The Victoria Police ante-mortem team collected DNA samples (mouth swabs) from the close relatives of those who died, and these were analysed by the scientists in VIFM’s DNA laboratory and compared with DNA from the deceased. Victoria Police forensic Service Department assisted VIFM with additional staff and the profiling of the DNA.
Reports for Final Comparison (Reconciliation)
VIFM medical and scientific experts were involved at this stage of the investigation by assisting as required in matching medical, dental, anthropological and DNA information gathered in the mortuary with information gathered about the victims in life. This is the reconciliation process where the Coroner makes a final decision about identity, based on all the information collected.