Fire Victims Research Articles

Semiquantitative screening of trace combustion-derived volatile substances in the blood of fire victims using NeedlEx® headspace gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

BackgroundVarious autopsy findings are used for the diagnosis of burning death, including inhalation injury, soot in the respiratory tract, vital reaction, blood carboxyhemoglobin (COHb), and blood cyanide. However, not all findings are necessarily complete, and autopsy diagnosis can be difficult in cases where there are few findings. In this study, we analyzed combustion-derived volatile substances (CVSs) in post-mortem blood in fire-related cases, focusing on those that occur when buildings and furniture thermally decompose during a fire, and evaluated these as potential new autopsy findings. MethodsThe blood CVSs of 61 fire-related cases from 2013 to 2015 were analyzed by a rapid and operationally simple method that employed a gas chromatograph–mass spectrometer coupled to a NeedlEx®, an extraction needle packed with a medium that selectively adsorbs volatile organic compounds. ResultsA total of 39 types of aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons were detected in the blood of fire victims. They could be detected even in post-mortem blood with COHb <10%, cyanide concentration <0.25μg/ml, and no soot in the respiratory tract. Styrene was detected in all cases except for one case of burning suicide with kerosene. The blood CVSs could be readily differentiated between the victims of building fires, self-immolation with kerosene, and self-immolation with gasoline: the presence of alpha-methylstyrene with a large amount styrene indicated a building fire; the detection of C9–C12 aliphatic hydrocarbons and C3 alkylbenzenes suggested a kerosene-related fire; and the detection of large amount of toluene and C3 alkylbenzenes indicated a gasoline-related fire. The number of blood CVSs detected for the building fire victims showed correlations with COHb level, cyanide concentration, and the amount of soot. With self-immolation, the number of blood CVSs detected showed weak correlation with COHb level, cyanide concentration, or amount of soot. ConclusionAnalysis of blood CVSs enabled the identification of the type of fire-related death, which is impossible by conventional autopsy findings.

The Existential Underpinnings of Intergroup Helping: When Normative and Defensive Motivations Collide.

Five studies examined defensive intergroup helping-when responsibility for an out-group victim's injury decreases helping, whereas lack of responsibility increases helping when death is salient. In Study 1 ( N = 350), implicit death primes increased petition signings to allow a Palestinian child to receive medical treatment in Israel, when the child was a victim of Palestinian fire. When the child was a victim of Israeli fire, however, death primes decreased petition signings. Study 2 ( N = 200) partially replicated these effects on commitment to donate blood to an injured Palestinian child. Study 3 ( N = 162) found that moral affirmation primes moderate defensive helping effects. Study 4 ( N = 372) replicated defensive helping, but failed to replicate the moral affirmation effect found in Study 3. Study 5 ( N = 243) partially replicated defensive helping and found that different framings of existential threat moderate the effect. Overall, results indicate that self-protective concerns underlie prosocial responses to out-group members in need.

Fire toxicity – The elephant in the room?

Fire toxicity is the largest cause of death and injury from unwanted fires, yet it is the least well studied area of fire science and engineering. Fire toxicity increases by factors up to 50, as the fire becomes under-ventilated. This has proved difficult, but not impossible, to replicate in a controlled way on a bench-scale. Clear correlations have been observed between the stoichiometric equivalence ratio, and the yields of the major asphyxiants, carbon monoxide and hydrogen cyanide. In addition, irritant components of fire effluents, which have an instantaneous effect, can incapacitate fire victims, trapping them in a fire. However, the longer term toxicants present in fire effluents, such as the carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and the microscopic particulates which result from their agglomeration are probably responsible for hundreds or thousands more deaths than the acute asphyxiants and irritants.

Application of 2-Aminothiazoline-4-carboxylic Acid as a Forensic Marker of Cyanide Exposure.

Cyanides are infamous for their highly poisonous properties. Accidental cyanide poisoning occurs frequently, but occasionally, intentional poisonings also occur. Inhalation of fumes generated by fire may also cause cyanide poisoning. There are many limitations in direct analysis of cyanide. 2-Aminothiazoline-4-carboxylic acid (ATCA), a cyanide metabolite, seems to be the only surrogate that is being used in the detection of cyanide because of its stability and its cyanide-dependent quality in a biological matrix. Unfortunately, toxicokinetic studies on diverse animal models suggest significant interspecies differences; therefore, the attempt to extrapolate animal models to human models may be unsuccessful. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the use of ATCA as a forensic marker of cyanide exposure. For this purpose, post-mortem materials (blood and organs) from fire victims (n = 32) and cyanide-poisoned persons (n = 3) were collected. The distribution of ATCA in organs and its thermal stability were evaluated. The variability of cyanides in a putrid sample and in the context of their long-term and higher temperature stability was established. The presence of ATCA was detected by using an LC-MS/MS method and that of cyanide was detected spectrofluorimetrically. This is the first report on the endogenous ATCA concentrations and the determination of ATCA distribution in tissues of fire victims and cyanide-poisoned persons. It was found that blood and heart had the highest ATCA concentrations. ATCA was observed to be thermally stable even at 90 °C. Even though the cyanide concentration was not elevated in putrid samples, it was unstable during long-term storage and at higher temperature, as expected. The relationship between ATCA and cyanides was also observed. Higher ATCA concentrations were related to increased levels of cyanide in blood and organs (less prominent). ATCA seems to be a reliable forensic marker of exposure to lethal doses of cyanide.

Remote sensing of vital sign of human body with radio frequency

Medical technology has improved remarkably in the field of health monitoring over the past few decades, becoming more sophisticated and less invasive as the years progress. Now, non-contact measurement of respiration and heartbeat with microwave Doppler radar phase modulation, offers an attractive alternative to commonly prescribed chest strap monitors. To monitor the vital signs an unmodulated radio frequency signal is transmitted toward the human body, where it is phase-modulated by the periodic physiological movement and reflected back to the receiver. The radar receiver captures the reflected signal and demodulates it to extract the vital sign signal components. The reflected signal from the body depends on the radar cross section (RCS) of body. In this paper the RCS of human body is measured in the X-band (8–12 GHz). There are several advantages to a noncontact measurement method: physically, it neither confines nor inhibits the subject and does not cause discomfort or skin irritation as electrodes and straps do. By measuring heartbeats, this technology can also be used to detect a person’s presence, search-and-rescue for earthquake or fire victims and border patrol. It has also attracted the interest of organizations requiring high security, such as see-through- wall radar and airport security monitoring.

Development of the Thermal Imaging Camera (TIC) Technology

The article presents the history of the development of Thermal Imaging Camera (TIC) in fire protection. It also includes the advantages of such cameras and how to use them. Manufacturers have developed cameras adapted to the needs of fire service units. Such cameras are easy to operate and suitable for harsh fire conditions. The cameras are usually used during extinguishing fires in buildings. They are useful primarily to assess the fire situation, detect the sources of ignition and search for fire victims.

Medical and biological factors affecting mortality in elderly residential fire victims: a narrative review of the literature.

For older people (aged over 65 years), the risk of dying in a residential fire is doubled compared to the general population. Obvious causes of death mainly include smoke inhalation and burn injuries. That older people are more fragile and have more concurrent diseases is inherent, but what is it that makes them more vulnerable? It is known that the number of elderly people is increasing globally and that the increased risk of death in fires can be explained, at least in part, by physical and/or cognitive disabilities as well as socioeconomic and behavioural factors. The possibility that medical illnesses and an aging organism/tissues might explain this increased risk has not been shown to the same extent. Therefore, this narrative literature review focuses on medical and biological explanations. An initial search using the terms ‘elderly’, ‘fatal’, ‘residential’ and ‘fire’ yielded some interesting articles. Using a broader snowball search also accepting grey literature, several additional risk factors could be identified. Cardiovascular diseases, in particular atherosclerotic heart disease, greatly increases the vulnerability to, for example, carbon monoxide and probably also other asphyxiating gases. Cardiovascular diseases and lack of physical fitness may also increase vulnerability to heat. Burned elderly patients are also at a higher risk of death than younger patients, but it is controversial whether it is age itself or the pre-existing illnesses that come with age that increase the risk. Immunosenescence, malnutrition and female gender are other risk factors for poorer outcome after burns, all of which are common among older people.

Tazreen Factory Fire : An Accident or Sheer Negligence?

This case explored the Dhaka based garment Tazreen factory fire, which killed and injured a large number of people. Through this accident, the case investigated the poor working conditions in the garments industry of Bangladesh, which frequently puts the life of millions of workers in danger. Despite the fact that the garment industry has been the backbone of the country, the case exposed how the workers of Bangladesh are exploited socially and economically inside the factories. Highlighting the irresponsible nature of the managers of the factory during the tragedy, this case also sheds light on the negligent behavior of major Western brands that have an undeniable responsibility towards maintaining better safety conditions for the factory workers. Additionally, the case discussed about the unrest in the RMG sector added by the poor response of the government towards such mishaps and delaying the compensation to the fire victims.

Human response to non‐injury accidental house fires

SummaryResearch on fatal fires and evacuation exercises yield little or no information about how fire victims respond to a real house fire incident where occupants' mental stress levels differ greatly. Drawing upon daily records of fire incidents from the Victorian Metropolitan Fire Brigade and Country Fire Authority, Australia, 182 individuals who had survived accidental residential fires without serious injuries were interviewed. Similar to most literature, this paper found that electrical failure and cooking‐related activities were the main causes of non‐injury house fires. The smell of smoke was the top listed cue that first alerted an individual (‘host’ or person in the vicinity). The majority of hosts took proactive actions when facing the threat of a fire, while in only one third of survived fires no attempt to extinguish the fire was made at the time of ignition. This study did not reveal any significant relationships between main activities during a fire and occupant characteristics; however, people with no or only basic fire safety knowledge were more likely to engage in activities such as attempting to extinguish a fire/collect personal belongings/rescue pets/disconnect power source than those who had some level of fire training. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Concentrations of cyanide in blood samples of corpses after smoke inhalation of varying origin.

Cyanide (CN) blood concentration is hardly considered during routine when evaluating smoke gas intoxications and fire victims, although some inflammable materials release a considerable amount of hydrogen cyanide. CN can be significant for the capacity to act and can in the end even be the cause of death. Systematic data concerning the influence of different fire conditions, especially those of various inflammable materials, on the CN-blood concentration of deceased persons do not exist. This study measured the CN level in 92 blood samples of corpses. All persons concerned were found dead in connection with fires and/or smoke gases. At the same time, the carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) level was determined, and the corpses were examined to detect pharmaceutical substances, alcohol and drugs. Furthermore, we analysed autopsy findings and the investigation files to determine the inflammable materials and other circumstances of the fires. Due to the inflammable materials, the highest concentration of CN in the victims was found after enclosed-space fires (n = 45) and after motor-vehicle fires (n = 8). The CN levels in these two groups (n = 53) were in 47% of the cases toxic and in 13% of the cases lethal. In victims of charcoal grills (n = 17) and exhaust gases (n = 6), no or only traces of CN were found. Only one case of the self-immolations (n = 12) displayed a toxic CN level. The results show that CN can have considerable significance when evaluating action ability and cause of death with enclosed-space fires and with motor-vehicle fires.

Poszkodowani w pożarach i miejscowych zagrożeniach, jakie miały miejsce w budynkach mieszkalnych w Polsce w latach 2000–2006

W artykule przedstawiono skutki osobowe pożarów mieszkań i miejscowych zagrożeń w Polsce w latach 2000–2006. Każdego roku w pożarach traci życie około 500 osób. Większość ofiar przypada na pożary mieszkań, z czego 60–70% tych przypadków to ofiary zetknięcia z dymami i toksycznymi produktami spalania. W artykule zaprezentowano przyczyny tak dużych strat osobowych oraz zaproponowano rozwiązanie, które znacząco przyczyni się do poprawy bezpieczeństwa mieszkańców.

Fire hazard in readymade garment factories and its impacts on workers in Dhaka metropolitan area, Bangladesh

Mirpur Thana, located in the northwestern part of Dhaka Metropolitan Area (DMA) is one of the most affected areas of fire in the RMG factories due to a large number of factories are operating in this area. Fire in the RMG sector has become a very common event in the recent years and causing colossal damage of lives and properties. The ultimate victims of fire in the factories are RMG workers because they become dead and injured and their livelihood held back. The present study based on the primary field investigation (including open ended questionnaire interview with a total of 70 workers), key informant interviews attempts to identify workers’ opinions on fire hazard issues and to understand the consequences, of how these problems become linked with the workers’ issue.J. Asiat. Soc. Bangladesh, Sci. 42(1): 77-93, June 2016

Hydrogen cyanide in fire tests

The gas composition of fire smoke depends on the material being burned. Plastics containing nitrogen, e. g. polyurethane, which are used in modern household furnishings release hydrogen cyanide (HCN) under the influence of heat. In order to evaluate the impact of HCN on the ability of victims to react and escape possibilities as well as on the cause of death, the concentration of HCN and other gaseous components of smoke were determined by burning materials containing polyurethane. Bench scale fire tests (smouldering fires) were performed using model sofa samples containing polyurethane. The concentrations of HCN, carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) were measured using Fourier transformation infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Additionally, the oxygen (O2) consumption, transmission and optical smoke density were determined. The gaseous concentrations in smoke determined in the bench scale fire tests were compared with the results of an enclosed room fire test (developing fire to full fire). The average maximum concentrations measured were 42 ppm for HCN and 1100 ppm for CO. The measured values can be classified as toxic to humans but are not in the fatal range. In relation to the dominant CO concentration during smouldering fires, the HCN content in fire smoke can only be considered as having a low-grade influence on human poisoning; however, if material containing polyurethane is burned in a full fire the HCN concentration must be considered as at least a contributing factor to the death of fire victims.

화재피해자의 긴급복구를 위한 민·관 융합형 지원시스템 방안

본 연구는 국내 화재피해자의 긴급복구를 위한 민 관 융합형 지원시스템 방안에 대한 것으로, 화재피해자의 긴급복구활동에 대한 현황과 문제점 분석을 통하여 정부와 민간 협력기반의 통합적 지원시스템 구축방안을 제시하였다. 전체적으로 국가는 시스템 운영의 관리 감독기관의 기능을 담당하고 민간에서 실질적 긴급복구 전담기관의 기능을 담당하는 시스템을 의미한다. 결과적으로, 화재피해 긴급복구 지원을 위한 법제도 정비, 지원사업의 민간위탁 시스템 구축, 소요재원의 안정적 조달 및 민 관 긴급복구의 융합기능 강화를 위한 지원시스템 방안을 도출하였다. 특히, 긴급복구 소요재원의 안정적 조달 방안은 긴급복구를 위한 기금의 신설 및 민간 수탁법인의 자체 재원 조성의 세부방안을 논의하였다. 본 연구결과는 향후 국가 소방안전복지와 사회안전망의 강화에 기여할 것이다. This study is related with support system plans of public-private convergence for emergency recovery services to fire victims. The current issues are analysed from the condition and problem analysis results of emergency recovery activities for fire victims. And building plans of an integrated support system based on the government and private sector cooperation are proposed. Overall, the system shows that the government is responsible for the functionality of management and supervision for the system operation, and the private is responsible for the functionality of specialized agencies for practical emergency recovery. Consequently, support system plans include with infrastructure maintenance of laws and regulations, contracting-out of the support system, stable supply of operating budget and function strengthening of public-private convergence for emergency recovery. Especially, plan for stable supply of operating budget in detail including with establishment of the fund and self-financing composition of private corporations for emergency recovery services is proposed. The results of this study will lead strengthening of fire safety welfare and social safety nets at future.

시안화이온의 pentafluorobenzyl bromide (PFBBr)에 의한 유도체화 후 GC/MS 분석에 의한 차량화재 변사체 사인규명에 관한 사례연구

시안화수소는 ABS (acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene) 등의 플라스틱류 화재시에 발생될 수 있는 유독성 기체이기에 시안화수소가 함유된 연기를 흡입하였을 경우 변사자의 혈액에서도 검출될 수 있다. 따라서 열기로 혈액 등의 생체시료의 손상정도가 강하여 일산화탄소-헤모글로빈 농도의 측정이 어려운 경우 사인규명을 위한 지표로 활용될 수 있으리라 사료된다. 본 연구의 사례는 유서와 함께 화재가 발생한 차량내에서 발견된 변사체의 사인규명과 관련이 있다. 화재사의 경우 일산화탄소-헤모글로빈 농도가 결정적인 정보를 제공하지만 열기로 심하게 손상되어 이에 대한 측정이 어려워 시안화이온을 분석하고자 하였다. 시안화이온을 양이온계면활성제와 함께 pentafluorobenzyl bromide로 유도체화 시킨 다음 기체크로마토그래피/질량분석법으로 scan mode와 SIM mode로 분석하였다. 변사체 심혈과 뇌혈에서 시안화이온이 정상 흡연자 14인의 평균값(0.041 &#xB5;g/mL)보다 높은 0.36 &#xB5;g/mL 및 1.20 &#xB5;g/mL 확인되었다. Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) is an extremely toxic gas frequently produced during the incineration of plastics, such as acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS). A victim of a fire who has inhaled smoke could have cyanide in the blood. Therefore, cyanide could be a good marker for a post-mortem examination of a fire as well as carboxyhemoglobine (COHb) test of blood samples. For a particular fire case, a burned body with a suicide note was found inside a burned vehicle. Even though the COHb value is conclusive evidence, measuring the COHb for denatured blood might be difficult due to severe thermal denaturation or the formation of methemoglobin (MetHb). To overcome this difficulty, cyanide could be used as an indicator when investigating the death of a fire victim. In this study, gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) was adopted to measure the levels of cyanide in the blood through derivatization with pentafluorobenzyl bromide (PFBBr) under cation surfactant by scan and SIM mode. The concentration of cyanide in the blood of heart blood and brain of the victim was found to be 0.36 &#xB5;g/mL and 1.20 &#xB5;g/mL respectively, which was higher than the average value (0.041 &#xB5;g/mL) found in the blood of 14 people who smoked.

Thermal Injuries in Veterinary Forensic Pathology.

Localized thermal injuries in animals may be caused by exposure to fire and radiant heat, contact with hot items including hot liquids or steam, inhalation of hot air, and exposure to cold temperatures. In addition, animal fire victims may have intoxications caused by smoke gas. This article reviews the causes, pathogenetic aspects, morphological findings, additional investigations, differential diagnoses, and causes of death in various forms of thermal injuries. Since these cases do not occur frequently in diagnostic pathology, they represent a challenging task in general but also with respect to forensic or criminal aspects, such as whether a lesion represents an accidental or nonaccidental effect. Besides detailed information about the circumstances at the location, thermal injuries in animals require a thorough morphological evaluation, including additional investigations in conjunction with a profound knowledge about the possible lesion spectrum and suitable additional investigations.

Advances in the research of pathogenesis and treatment of severe smoke inhalation injury

Among the fire victims, respiratory tract injury resulted from smoke inhalation is the major cause of death. Particulate substances in smoke, toxic and harmful gas, and chemical substances act together would rapidly induce the occurrence of dramatic pathophysiologic reaction in the respiratory tract, resulting in acute injury to the respiratory tract, thus inducing serious injury to it and acute respiratory distress syndrome, leading to death of the victims. In recent years, the pathophysiologic mechanism of severe smoke inhalation injury has been gradually clarified, thus appreciable advances in its treatment have been achieved. This paper is a brief review of above-mentioned aspects.

Forensic odontology: A historic review

Forensic odontology has played a major role in identification of persons in crime scenes, mass disasters, fire victims, abuse, and accidents. The various methods employed in forensic odontology include rugoscopy, cheiloscopy, photographic study, radiographs, and molecular methods. Despite the shortcomings, methods applied in forensic odontology are quite reliable. This paper is a review on the historical highlights of forensic odontology.

Post-Mortem Identification of a Fire Carbonized Body by STR Genotyping

Identification of bodies of unknown identity that are victims of exposure to very high temperatures, resulting from fires, plane crashes, and terrorist attacks, represents one of the most difficult sides of forensic genetics, because of the advanced state of decomposition. The aim of this study was the identification of the carbonized cadaver of a fire victim through STR genotyping. We used blood samples obtained from the iliac artery during the autopsy examination as biological samples from the unidentified victim. After DNA isolation and quantification, we proceeded to its amplification using the multiplex PCR kit AmpFlSTR Identifiler. The DNA products were separated using an ABI 3500 genetic analyzer. Further analysis of the data was done using Gene Mapper ID-X version 1.4 software. In this case, it was possible to obtain a complete DNA profile from the biological samples. Due to the fact that the amelogenin gene presented two alleles, X and Y, we concluded that the victim was a man. We conclude that STR profiling of unidentified bodies (carbonized, decomposed) represents a powerful method of human identification in forensic medicine.

Fire risk perception and building evacuation by vulnerable persons: Points of view of laypersons, fire victims and experts

Fire risk perception and its influence on building evacuation were studied in order to improve building evacuation processes. The sample adopted in this study consisted of (i) laypersons, mostly elderly; (ii) healthcare professionals working with vulnerable individuals who live with disability on an everyday basis, for their point of view on disabled persons; (iii) fire victims for their experience (persons who suffered burns in a fire).Qualitative research was used to study fire risk perception and to understand the attitudes and behaviours of individuals. The information was collected during interviews following a questionnaire that combined questions of a general nature, questions referring to the fire and questions focused on the experience of evacuating a building.Results of this inductive, exploratory and qualitative method showed differences between the analysis of experts, the point of view of laypersons and the experience of fire victims. They also showed that risk perception is influenced by psychological, social, physical, political (here regulatory and normative) and cultural factors. Fire risk perception is based on the individual-environment-risk paradigm. Among the factors characterising risk perception, we noted the preponderant role of trust emerges, as well as that of the human environments (daily and emergency), the physical environment (building) and the climate of safety in which the event takes place. These different dimensions of fire risk perception show that it is a combination of psychometric and cultural paradigms. Building evacuation is seen as a psychological process involving both emotion and cognition.The resulting model aims to improve the understanding of a building evacuation process and to provide tools to anticipate crises.