A coroner has warned about the dangers of a chemical that is commonly used on bodies repatriated from abroad
London mortuary workers were exposed to ‘dangerously high’ levels of chemicals from the bodies of Air India plane crash victims who have been repatriated to the UK, according to a coroner’s report.
Air India Flight 171 to London Gatwick hit a building shortly after take-off in Ahmedabad in June, killing 241 people on board and a further 19 on the ground. Fifty-three British nationals died and there was only one survivor.
Now a coroner’s report, released ahead of inquests into the deaths, said bodies taken to Westminster Public Mortuary had been saturated in high levels of formalin. Formalin is commonly used to preserve human remains, especially for repatriations from abroad, but it contains formaldehyde.
Formaldehyde can cause severe respiratory irritation at high levels, while long-term exposure can cause cancer, according to the UK Health Security Agency. Dangerous levels of carbon monoxide and cyanide were also recorded in the mortuary, said the report.
“Many of the mortuary users appeared unaware and were surprised by the nature of the danger from the formalin,” wrote coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox, adding: “There is an under appreciation across mortuaries of the dangers posed by formalin to the health of all mortuary users.”
Listing the dangers, Dr Wilcox wrote:
- This substance can cause severe respiratory irritation
- It is a volatile substance which means that it disperses into the atmosphere
- It is carcinogenic and is known to cause acute myeloid leukaemia
- It has toxic effects including metabolic acidosis, bronchospasm, pulmonary oedema and death
The coroner called for mortuaries to be better prepared and equipped to monitor formalin levels in bodies that enter the UK. After the Air India repatriation, it became apparent there was “a significant chemical hazard” when mortuary workers were opening coffins, with levels of formalin “found to be dangerously high” at “apparently 40%.”
“With heat and light exposure it breaks down releasing carbon monoxide which is highly toxic,” Dr Wilcox wrote in the report, “If it mixes with a source of ammonia (commonly seen with decomposition), cyanide which is also highly toxic can be released.”
The letter addressed to Housing Secretary Steve Reed and Health Secretary Wes Streeting called on the relevant Government departments to take action to prevent any risk of death in the future.
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