Burn disasters in shooting range areas

Forensic Sci Int. 2008 Aug 6;179(2-3):144-6. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2008.04.025. Epub 2008 Jun 13.

Abstract

Shooting range injuries are generally caused by ballistic accidents, and so far no burn disaster has been reported. In this article we reported a disaster caused by a gunpowder explosion in an indoor shooting range area in Istanbul, Turkey. Fourteen injured people were evacuated from the scene. Our burn center accepted 7 of them. Of the 7 injured people, 2 who were accepted by our burn center, and 3 people who were admitted by another center died. It is clearly identified how this mechanism of injury differs from that of usual burn injuries, due to both the high temperature generated, and the combination of hot and toxic gases produced by the explosion. We described the features of burn injury, and possible reasons of burn disasters.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Bandages
  • Burn Units
  • Burns / etiology*
  • Burns / pathology
  • Burns / therapy
  • Confined Spaces
  • Disasters*
  • Explosions*
  • Female
  • Firearms*
  • Forensic Medicine
  • Humans
  • Intubation, Intratracheal
  • Length of Stay
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Multiple Organ Failure / etiology
  • Respiration, Artificial
  • Sepsis / etiology
  • Trauma Severity Indices
  • Turkey