►Get ready... 40,000

Shelbyville Times-Gazette (KY)

Funeral director deploys to hurricane region

A co-owner of Shelbyville-based Gowen-Smith Chapel has been deployed to Gulfport, Miss., to help with recovery since Hurricane Katrina, and his business partner here has described the grim task there.

"DMort is telling us to expect up to 40,000 bodies," Dan Buckner said, quoting officials with the Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team, a volunteer arm of Homeland Security...

Dark days ahead. Saints preserve us. And rest in peace.

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DMORT on the DHS/FEMA site:

What Is A Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team (DMORT)?

The National Response Plan assigns the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) Section under Emergency Support Function #8 (ESF #8) to provide victim identification and mortuary services. These responsibilities include:

• temporary morgue facilities

• victim identification

• forensic dental pathology

• forensic anthropology methods

• processing

• preparation

• disposition of remains

In order to accomplish this mission, Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Teams (DMORTs) were developed. DMORTs are composed of private citizens, each with a particular field of expertise, who are activated in the event of a disaster. DMORT members are required to maintain appropriate certifications and licensure within their discipline. When members are activated, licensure and certification is recognized by all States, and the team members are compensated for their duty time by the Federal government as a temporary Federal employee. During an emergency response, DMORTs work under the guidance of local authorities by providing technical assistance and personnel to recover, identify, and process deceased victims.

DMORT's regional teams sites. (Unofficial - inside baseball of volunteer medics)