When news broke that 16 workers were “vaporized” in the Tennessee explosives plant disaster, headlines spread fast - but what does that actually mean?
In this Morbid Monday deep dive, Lauren the Mortician breaks down the science behind what happens to the human body in a massive explosion, what “vaporized” really means (spoiler: it’s not what you think), and why recovery teams like the Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team (DMORT)1 deserve more credit than they ever get.
We’ll look at the history of “vaporized” victims - from Hiroshima to 9/11 - and talk about the forensic truth, the emotional aftermath, and the humanity inside the science.
About Lauren the Mortician
Curious about what happens after we die - from embalming and cremation to the disturbing, bizarre, and forgotten corners of funeral history?
Then Lauren the Mortician is your source: funeral director, embalmer, and your favorite caffeinated death educator.
If you’ve ever caught yourself thinking “Wait… what do they really do with the body?” - or if you’ve laid awake wondering what happens to corpses lost at sea, buried in glass, or recovered decades later - welcome. Lauren is your gal.
This channel is where dark curiosity meets mortuary science, with a healthy dose of sarcasm, coffin puns, and spiritual side quests.
Because death doesn’t have to be scary, but is fascinating.
Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Teams (DMORT)
DMORT is a group of experts specializing in disaster victim identification and mortuary services. DMORTs are activated within the U.S. to assist in the identification and storage of deceased individuals following large-scale disasters. These teams are comprised of diverse professionals, including funeral directors, medical examiners, coroners, pathologists, forensic anthropologists, fingerprint specialists, forensic odontologists, and dental assistants, supported by various administrative and technical personnel. DMORTs operate as intermittent federal employees who deploy from their regular jobs when activated during mass fatality incidents. They were conceived due to concerns about the lack of standards for managing the deceased in such events and are now part of the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) under FEMA, working under local authorities to process victims.
