HSD SGER: Cross-Cultural Analysis of Responses to Mass Fatalities Following the Indian Ocean Tsunami of December 26, 2004

Millersville University, Millersville PA

Investigators

Abstract

The study will identify the mechanisms employed in India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand following the tsunami for body recovery, identification and disposal, notification of deceased victims' relatives, and repatriation of remains of foreign victims. It will also focus on the proportion of government-driven mass fatalities response versus non-government organization driven mass fatalities response (including emergent organizations) in Sri Lanka and Thailand as a comparison to the primarily government-driven response in the western industrialized countries. In particular, this research team will study the impact of ethnicity, socioeconomic status and nationality on the response to mass fatalities created by the tsunami. It will also seek to examine the current procedures in place in western countries such as the United States, Canada, France, Sweden and the United Kingdom including the international approach to DVI (disaster victim identification) as developed through an Interpol committee. The team will compare the responses in Asia to those in previous, smaller incidents in western industrialized countries such as the Estonia ferry incident, the Lockerbee crash, and the Oklahoma City bombing, among others. This research will result in a practical outcome such as revisiting of planning procedures for mass death including those developed by Interpol and in a clearer understanding of the response to mass fatalities across cultures focusing upon the transcultural elements that can be applied in the United States. Fourteen researchers from the U.S., Canada, Australia, India and Bangladesh are involved in the project. Two researchers are medical doctors, one is an architect (and dean of an Indian emergency management center), one is a minister, while the others are social scientists. Ten researchers will comprise three field teams (one team to go to Thailand, one to go Sri Lanka, and one to go to India). The other project participants will provide consulting and support. The findings will be shared with the universities of the participants, publishing in journals such as the International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, and shared via a teleconference. This research is supported jointly by the Human and Social Dynamics (HSD) priority area, the Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE), and the Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES) Program.