Triage Recovery
Definition
Recovery that prioritises the most complete or identifiable remains first, typically under time or resource pressure. Contrasted with systematic grid recovery, which treats all areas equally regardless of obvious remains density.
- Priority
- Most complete or identifiable remains first
- Driver
- Time or resource pressure
- Contrast
- Systematic grid recovery treats all areas equally
- Field
- Disaster victim identification
Common questions
What is the trade-off in choosing triage recovery over systematic grid recovery?+
Triage recovers identifiable remains faster, which matters when victim identification is urgent, but it risks missing smaller or scattered fragments that a slower, exhaustive grid search would eventually locate.
When would investigators choose triage recovery despite its limitations?+
Mass fatality incidents with large numbers of victims, unstable scenes, or severe resource constraints often force triage recovery as the only practical option, with a return to systematic methods later if conditions allow.
Related terms
- AM/PM Data
- Ante-mortem data (records from life: dental charts, medical records, DNA reference samples) and post-mortem data (findings from the body after death). Identification...
- Body Part Number (BPN)
- A unique alphanumeric identifier assigned to every human-tissue fragment at the point of discovery, cross-referenced to its spatial coordinates and the personal...
- DVI (Disaster Victim Identification)
- The systematic multi-agency process for identifying victims of mass-casualty events, governed by the INTERPOL DVI Guide 2018 revision. Organises work into five...
- Interpol Yellow Notice
- An international alert issued to help identify unknown bodies; complemented by the DVI PM (post-mortem) form, which captures all physical, dental, and...
- Scene Zoning
- The formal division of a disaster scene into sectors (hot zone, warm zone, cold zone) or operational grids, allocating search, recovery, and...