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Sniffing out disaster victims

Abstract

The risk of global mass disaster events is increasing due to climate change and acts of terrorism. The most critical action following these events is locating victims. Current detection methods have several limitations such as cost, limited operational time and deployment constraints in hazardous scenarios. As an alternative, an electronic nose capable of locating victims by targeting volatile chemical components emitted from the human body was developed. This talk will present the device and the theory behind its use. Several tests using the device will also be presented including use in simulated disaster events using donated human remains at the Australian Facility for Taphonomic Experimental Research (AFTER). Further development of the device may result in a new technology approach that will improve mass disaster recovery on a global scale and provide significant benefit to human welfare.