| Has the threat of terrorism made you afraid
to fly? How do you think you’d feel if you
were one of the courageous professionals who headed
up the disaster recovery efforts after the crash
of SwissAir flight 111 off the coast of Nova Scotia
in 1998 or the crash of the hijacked United Airlines
flight 93 in Pennsylvania on Sept 11, 2001?
I had a chance to find out at this year’s
Crime & Science conference sponsored by BCIT’s
Forensic Science Technology department.
Dr. John Butt, C.M., M.D., F.R.C., was the Chief
Medical Examiner involved in the SwissAir disaster
off the coast of Nova Scotia. He is a highly-qualified
specialist in forensic medicine and pathology,
President of the U.S. National Association of
Medical Examiners, head of Pathfinder Forum Consultants
in Forensic Science and Pathology, and teaches
at Dalhousie University.
The SwissAir flight was one of the daily “UN
Shuttles,” a flight that left New York for
Geneva every day, carrying dignitaries and cargo.
Faulty repairs to an entertainment unit in 1st
class caused a fire that caused the airliner to
crash. The Department of National Defence, Fisheries
& Oceans, the RCMP, the Transportation Safety
Board and the Chief Medical Examiner of Nova Scotia
were all involved in the disaster recovery efforts.
Dr. Butt oversaw the recovery and identification
of the human remains.
The impact of hitting the water at 550 m.p.h.
fragmented the aircraft into many tiny pieces.
The bodies of the passengers were also shattered.
Amazingly 1 intact body was recovered, Mrs. Benjamin.
She was sitting in seat R27E and there is no rhyme
nor reason why her body remained intact.
Dr. Butt and the many people who assisted him
were able to identify all of the 229 people who
were killed in the crash, primarily using DNA.
They also used dental and other x-rays, and documentation
such as passports and drivers licenses carried
by the passengers.
It was a horrific disaster and the recovery of
and identification of all of the body parts took
3 months. Winter storms brought a halt to their
work and they had to continue sorting through
the debris from the ocean floor the following
year.
The toughest part of Dr. Butt’s job was
explaining to the next of kin of the victims what
had happened, answering their questions and helping
them deal with their grief. Dr. Butt stressed
the importance of dealing with the families and
the media with honesty, respect and compassion.
Dr. Butt had the utmost respect for all the organizations
and people involved in the disaster recovery.
He described the way the people came together
to deal with the disaster as a spiritual and beautiful
experience. The emotional impact of what he had
been through was evident at many points in Dr.
Butt’s presentation. His presentation made
a lasting impact on everyone in the room.
Wallace Miller is the County Coroner of Somerset,
Pennsylvania where the United Airlines flight
93 crashed on September 11, 2001. Flight 93 was
the 4th airliner hijacked by terrorists and was
headed for the Washington DC. The terrorists were
overtaken by the heroic passengers of that flight
and the plane crashed into an abandoned strip
mine in Shanksville Pennsylvania. The passengers’
actions saved the lives of many other people who
were the targets of the terrorists.
Because hijacking is a felony and the plane crossed
state lines, the FBI took the lead in the disaster
recovery. They were joined by many other organizations
including the National Transportation Safety Board
and the County Coroner’s office.
Like the SwissAir disaster, the flight 93 aircraft
fragmented on impact. This crash was on land however,
and it created a large crater in the ground, scattering
tiny pieces of aircraft and passengers for over
100 acres.
The Coroner used the same methods used in the
SwissAir disaster to identify the human remains.
Mr. Miller emphasized the fact that 92% of the
passengers’ bodies vapourized on impact.
Only 8% of the total mass of the passengers’
weight was recovered. Shards of aircraft, bone
and teeth were found embedded 4 to 5” deep
in the trunks of the trees that bordered the crash
site. Despite these facts, the coroner’s
office was able to identify all 33 passengers,
7 crew and 4 terrorists.
Mr. Miller personally met with every family member
to who came to Shanksville to view the site. He
also called every next of kin who did not come
to Shanksville to express his condolences and
answer their questions. Like Dr. Butt, he was
profoundly moved by his involvement and views
it as a spiritual experience.
Mr. Miller confessed that he is afraid to fly,
but said his fear stemmed from way before the
Shanksville disaster. Which brings me back to
my original question, are you afraid to fly?
According to keynote speaker Gerry Binnema, you
shouldn’t be. Mr. Binnema is an aircraft
accident investigator with the Transportation
Safety Board of Canada and a Safety Officer with
System Safety at Transport Canada. He is a pilot,
flight instructor and licensed aircraft maintenance
engineer. Mr. Binnema told us that air travel
is 100 times safer than travel by car. You would
have to fly from Vancouver to Toronto and back
the next day, every day for 300 years, before
you would reach a 50/50 chance of being in an
accident. Sounds tiring, but safe.
Dorothy Stout, who has a Masters in Forensic
Science, also gave a fascinating presentation
on Forensic Video Analysis. She can take even
the most streaked and snowy video and get a pretty
clear picture. Also video tape submerged in water
for years or burned in fire can be restored. This
is because the tape is wound so tightly that the
tape at the centre is usually not damaged.
The Crime & Science Conference is open to
the public and is usually held the 3rd Saturday
of March each year. It costs $95 for the day.
Next year will be the 10th Crime & Science
Conference sponsored by BCIT. It is sure to be
a block buster. Check out their website at www.bcit.ca/forensic.
Alaura Ross is a member of GVC.
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