Recovery Guidance - Humanitarian Aspects
Mass Fatalities
Background and Context
A mass fatality incident is defined as any incident where the number of fatalities is greater than normal local arrangements can manage.
Any plan for dealing with fatalities needs to be integrated with all aspects of the response and recovery from such situations and incidents. Organisations need to work in collaboration with others on key activities and ensure their own plans are robust.
The Mass Fatalities Workstream (under the Civil Contingencies Secretariat Capabilities Programme) aims to build generic capability to deal with large scale events involving large numbers of fatalities both in the UK and overseas. Recent examples include Ladbroke Grove rail crash and Indian Ocean Tsunami. There is a need to ensure integrity of identification of the deceased whilst balancing the needs of families and any investigation.
Policy and Guidance
England
The ACPO manual is a generic concept of operations for Police Forces and identifies roles and responsibilities. This is currently under review.
Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) Strategy – A DVI manual is in preparation.
Mass Fatality Guidance – Currently under review by the Home office
Wales
As above.
Scotland
The Scottish Government is currently preparing mass fatalities guidance.
Northern Ireland
[TBC]
Roles and Responsibilities
Local
The Local Authority is responsible for establishing and equipping those Mortuaries that are required in a mass fatalities emergency. Local Authorities are encouraged to use mutual aid arrangements, where necessary, to fulfil this responsibility. The Local Authority is responsible for alerting social services, the Environment Agency and calling on support from Faith Leaders and the Voluntary Sector to assist in welfare provision for family and friends of the deceased.
Social Services will liaise with the police Family Liaison Co-ordinator to assess the need for trauma support staff and other tangible support for families and friends who view the deceased and/or need to deal with funeral arrangements.
The Local Authority will usually appoint and support a Mortuary Facilities Manager. This appointment may be achieved by utilising the principles of mutual aid.
The Local Authority within whose area the mortuary is situated (unless otherwise agreed) will assist in matters relating to:
- the management of all sub-contracted services (unless stated as otherwise in agreements contained within the National Emergency Mortuary Arrangements)
- public health
- Health & Safety
- hazardous waste collection
- the management of effluent discharges in consultation with the water service, utility provider and the Environment Agency
- refuse collection
- cleaning and road-sweeping
- the provision of garden and landscaping services
- the upkeep and appearance of all public areas within the mortuary
Regional
It is recognised that local plans might be insufficient to cope with large scale events, and so sub-regional or regional response mass fatality plans might be required. Regional Resilience Forums (Wales Resilience Forum in Wales) should engage with local authorities in their area to agree the scale of planning required.
National
In recognition that a regional response may become overwhelmed, the Home Office have worked with the Regional Resilience Forums and the devolved administrations to establish national capability to deal with mass fatality incidents.
Requests for central assistance must be put to the Home Office Mass Fatalities Section. National approval is required so that central resources can be tracked against the potential for further incidents.
Lead Government Department
The Home Office is the lead Government Department on mass fatalities.
Other Government Involvement
The departments involved will be determined by the type of incident that has occurred.
HM Coroner
It is the responsibility of the Coroner to establish cause of death, circumstances and identification of a body. If an incident crosses more than one coroner's jurisdiction, a lead coroner will have to be identified. The coroner will decide if post mortems are required to establish death. Coroners should have emergency plans to deal with multiple deaths that may impact on normal working arrangements.
Coroner's Officers
A coroner's officer is the representative of the coroner and duties include supervising procedures for the removal, examination, identification and viewing of victims, and keeping the coroner informed on all matters. The role will be important at the scene of incidents, which they may attend if appropriate, and at the mortuary.
The responsibilities of the coroner's officer include:
- Providing information for the coroner and contacting hospitals about subsequent deaths
- Liaising with victim recovery teams
- Arranging transfers of victim from scene to mortuary
- Liaising with the lead pathologist on the extent of examination, taking of specimens and determining cause of death
- Liaising with local authorities regarding establishment of the mortuary
- Membership of the mortuary management team.
Pathology Team
The pathology team will be made up of relevant specialists operating under the supervision of the lead pathologist and on behalf of the coroner. This team will work to a pathology plan that covers anything ranging from key considerations at the scene to completion of mortuary procedures. The lead pathologist will be a member of the Identification Commission and the pathology team will support the coroner in establishing the identity of victims, and where, when, and how death occurred.
Specialist Police Roles
Scene Evidence Recovery Manager (SERM)
- Develop a recovery strategy and a plan to remove deceased victims, property and evidence from the scene.
- Develop a security strategy.
- Preserve the scene and safety.
Senior Identification Manager (SIM)
- The function of the SIM is to recover the deceased in a dignified manner, ensuring integrity of identification and forensic evidence.
- Identify as accurately and speedily as possible using ethical means, keeping families informed throughout the process.
- Responsible for victim recovery at scene.
- Has overall responsibility for family liaison and the Casualty Bureau.
Senior Investigation Officer (SIO)
- The SIO works with the SIM to develop the forensic identification strategy including collection of samples by Family Liaison Officers.
- Assume responsibility for the investigation following ACPO guidance.
- Appoint an investigation team.
- Attend silver/gold meetings.
- Liaise with representatives from other legally appointed agencies.
- Liaise with the SIM and SERM.
- Provide reports to the coroner, inquiry or court proceedings.
Casualty Bureau
The purpose of Casualty Bureau is to provide a central contact and information point for all records and data relating to persons who have, or are believed to have, been involved in an incident
It has four fundamental tasks:
- Inform the investigation process.
- Trace and identify people involved in the emergency.
- Reconcile missing persons.
- Collate accurate information.
This will involve:
- Receiving enquiries from the general public and recording missing persons reports.
- Recording details of survivors, evacuees, the injured and deceased, including their whereabouts.
- Formulating a comprehensive list of missing persons.
- Collating data to assist in the identification of all persons involved.
- Liaising with the ante mortem team.
- Informing enquirers (by the most appropriate method) of the condition and location of these persons.
Industrial and Commercial Organisations
Dealing with fatalities in emergencies will have the potential to overwhelm the responding agencies, and many local authorities rely on contracted arrangements for many of the normal services they provide. It is accepted by some local authorities that some of the facilities and services necessary for dealing with fatalities will, or could be, provided by commercial services. For example, this could relate to providing temporary mortuaries or social and psychological aftercare. It is necessary for local authorities to be confident in the provision of these services and to consider a fallback option in the event that the terms of a contract are not met.
Many other industrial and commercial organisations may have a direct role to play in relation to emergencies, including utilities. Where this is the case, it will be necessary to include such organisations within the planning, training and exercising arrangements. When dealing with fatalities in emergencies, involvement of industrial and commercial organisations will be on the instruction of the relevant authority, for example, the local authority or the police, and appropriate tendering processes will need to be considered.
Voluntary Agencies
Volunteers can contribute to a wide range of activities, either as members of a voluntary organisation or as individuals. When responding to emergencies, such volunteers must be under the control of the relevant statutory authority.
For information on Family Support Groups and other humanitarian assistance, see the Needs of people – non-health topic sheet.
Devolved Administrations
Wales
As above.
Scotland
[TBC]
Northern Ireland
[TBC]
Funding
For funding of Coroners, see Coroners' Inquests.
The cost of deployment of national capabilities will be met by the relevant local authority requesting assistance.
Devolved Administrations
Wales
As above.
Scotland
[TBC]
Northern Ireland
[TBC]
Links to Other Topic Sheets
Case Studies (Incidents and Exercises)
Other Documents
List of Contacts
