Had my first DOA this morning...

[SirLancelot]

Week 4 of FTO. Got dispatched to a welfare check this morning. RP stated he hadn't been able to get in touch with his sister-in-law for 2 days. Vehicle in the driveway, no answer to knocks on the door..... I got a feeling I knew where the call was going before I even responded to dispatch... Sure enough, 310lb 65yr old female, DOA on the bathroom floor. Thank God it didn't happen a week ago when we had a Seattle heat wave. Still, that's a smell I won't forget for a long time. Not for a long time. Visually, it actually was barely disturbing to me personally at all. But that smell....

I hope the drycleaners can get my uniform wool pants good and clean. I hear they hold smells for a while.

[ChgoPaintball]

I remember my first smelly one. was a day old but levitity has already set in on the legs. She was about 50yo and died sitting up on a recliner. Smell was bad but i said the same thing. Thank God it wasnt a oozer.

[CPD7297]

Ah, yes my first DOA. I was new and working a one-man cruiser. A family member met me at the house. The person had not been seen nor heard from in about a week. I found him bloated lying on the couch with no shirt, his pants pulled down to his knees and a Playboy magazine nearby. I assumed he went out with a groan and a smile. The smell was terrible and the body was so ripe it split open when we lifted him onto the stretcher. In those days, the precinct wagon hauled all DOA's. Now a private firm handles the natural cause deaths. Be prepared because you'll have many more DOA runs. :eek:

[rocky08]

Hopefully seeing it will settle ok with you. Always better to have your first DOA that way instead of a gruesome carnage on a highway.

Make sure you don't settle on it to much and have some chats about it with co-workers if needed. The only way to stay sane in this industry.

[LASD6833]

Wait till you smell burned flesh or gangrene.

[D.o.D cop]

I was lucky on my first DOA. Dead for about, oh, 5 minutes. Colon cancer. What made it harder is the fact he worked with my father at one point, and his 16 yoa duaghter watched him pass away. Poor girl. Her crying bothered me more than the dead guy.

[jchughes05]

My first DOA was accidental OD, still had the needle in his vein, head in a trashcan. My 2nd that same night (yes, 7hr later) was a guy who died from a heart problem sometime during the night, discovered by his g/f when she got up.

[nebraska_deputy]

The first one I had was a 15 year old at home Hospice. The family was ready for it and called about 15 minutes after his death. The second one was a suicide GSW. He had been there for a few days the only thing I think that prevented the really strong smell was it was in the winter time and the heat appeared to be turned off to the house.

For some reason the last one I had is the main one that's stuck with me. I had just talked to the person a couple days before. She was a waitress at one of our local dinners and was a nice lady. I got called to her house around 6AM, she had died in her bath tub while turning on the water. For some reason I will never forget the look on her face. It's one of them you try to remember how they looked when they were still alive, but you can't.

[WKT]

I walked into one of the local ER's a couple of years ago and the smell coming from one of the rooms was horrendous...and the door was shut. Found out later that an elderly woman who was being "cared for" by her worthless son had been brought in by ambulance. Son called in and said he thought she had a stroke.

Turns out, she had been lying on a couch for weeks. Never been moved. The maggots and blowflies had to be removed individually from the back of her body, as well as one or two of the couch cushions that had basically stuck to her. More specifically, she had to be taken in the ambulance with the cushions stuck to her so that the ER doctors and nurses could remove them.

Some of the nurses got sick and had to go home. There were several bags filled with the stuff they pulled off this woman. She died a day or two later. The son went to prison.

Be good to your kids, they might be taking care of you one day.

[chiefcop]

Alaska, Spring, when it gets warm in the day and still cold at night; cold enough for the furnace to kick on. Warm enough in the day to reach 70+ inside a closed up house.

Hummmm you know where this is going.
Welfare check, two weeks not seen...hummmmm

Open door WHAT IS that smell...............opened some doors and windows prior to completing the call....OUCH:eek:

[bucksone]

My first was many years ago as a rookie. A girl gave birth, wrapped the baby in towels and stuck the baby in a box under her bed. My fto and I and a paramedic found the baby. The coroner couldn't prove it was a live birth, which had an effect on what charges were able to be filed.

That was one of only two times in my career when I went home after working third shift and drank in the morning. I know they say that's a bad idea, drinking after a situation like that, but it worked for me that morning.

I suspect dead kids affect all of us in a worse way than dead adults.

[SirLancelot]

Following up on my original post above, week 5, DOA #2. Not as bad, but I sure hope this isn't setting a trend now...

I have three young children and hope I never have to handle one of those.

[Hoosier_Boy]

Following up on my original post above, week 5, DOA #2. Not as bad, but I sure hope this isn't setting a trend now...

I have three young children and hope I never have to handle one of those.


You will... Someone like that was my very first DOA... 4 month of baby... SIDS... but never the less... a god awful situation that I couldn't help...

[deputy x 2]

A dead body on a "Monday" sucks for the ole uniform.

And for the smell.....keep a small bottle of Vicks in your gearbag.

This is where the sic humor begins. Something about dead bodies...they stick in your mind forever...I still remember the first one...name and details. In FTO I had 4 in 2 days!!!:eek::eek::D:D

[SlowDownThere]

Wait till you smell burned flesh or gangrene.

Or one that's been locked in a car, out in the sun for a few days.

[astralisdustin]

I had one the other day that was sealed in a small apt with no A/C for a week or so. I was the first one in the apartment too. It wasn't pleasant.

[ChgoPaintball]

Wait till you smell burned flesh or gangrene.

had one close to that. Happened today 8/30/08. Was a suicide in bathtub and had an electric equipment with him. Was only 8 hours dead but the smell started to stink in about 2 hours at the scene.

nasty part was the skin coming off when trying to remove the body from the tub which had water in it still.

and the a/c was broken and hit was hot as hell in that apt.

[deputy x 2]

nasty part was the skin coming off when trying to remove the body from the tub which had water in it still.

That's called skin slip...call the fire dept / search and rescue...they have stokes or litters that can be used like a strainer.

[BPD_126]

Or one that's been locked in a car, out in the sun for a few days.

KC had one many years ago. Lady calls in the middle of July and says she's been smelling something strange from that car parked on the curb. It's been there for over two weeks. Stolen car, body wrapped up in plastic in the trunk that had been shot. Body, soup more like it w/ bones. I think I remember hearing it was a 14 year old kid.

My first DOA was on break-in, guy died on the toilet. He had just filled a script of 60 pills 3 days ago. "Take 1 by mouth 3x daily." He had a little over 20 left...... Ruled as natural causes which still confuses me. The guy was 40 years old and I got to go downstairs and comfort his 16 year old boy who was in a corner sobbing, and me knowing there was no chance in hell his dad would be revived due to time lapse. I kept thinking, "I couldn't imagine losing my dad when I was in high school."

We had another DOA, thank God I hadn't come to work yet, in a trailer last Aug. Suicide, no AC, had a note on the computer he wrote 2 weeks prior. The officer that responded said he took seeing flies on the inside of the screened windows as a BAD sign, less the smell from the outside of the trailer.

[1096]

Wait till you get the bloated, stinking ones, with the maggots covering their faces, and the flies all over the windows. The smell will stay with you all day and night. Good stuff...........

[JFischetti]

Couple the dept had recently...

Guy found in lake floating after about 3 days... skin was a white/blue color, no eyes (from the fish eating them out aparently) and all bloated up, ran his DL and you would not be able to tell it was this kid.

Double suicide (approx 1-2 weeks). Guy bloated on bed and and girlfriend hanging from the ceiling fan.

Those weren't mine specifically.. I mostly get the naturals.

[perks]

My first one was a MVA rollover the lady broke her neck. No seatbelt, and alcohol. My fto and I were second on scene behind fire command. It was in county's area but we were closer, so we didn't have to do all the paperwork and what not. The part that sticks with me still is when fire removed her from the truck I was watching but standing back, when they got her from the ditch to road level they set her down at my feet. Her body facing one way, head the other way looking straight up at me with eyes open. The color of her face and everything else still gets me every now and then. I was only on for about 3 months as a reserve.

[C-15]

south Mississippi heat summer stays in the high 80s at night and 95 plus in the day and humidity is awful. sister found him and said he never had black curtins turns out it was flies covering up the window, she hadnt talked to him in a week and a half.. we had to wear chemical suits and masks to go in especially after we found out he had TB...

[katseiye]

Following up on my original post above, week 5, DOA #2. Not as bad, but I sure hope this isn't setting a trend now...

I have three young children and hope I never have to handle one of those.

But it will happen. Ive had five D.I.'s involving children u/10 in my career. 3 natural, one auto/ped and one homicide. Thankfully, there are others I missed out on for various reasons. Regardless of the how, thier hardest for me. But you do your job and realize the family needs your expertise and compassion.:(

[Nonsequitur]

Of course you will now recognize that smell just about anywhere. I have found a couple DRT (Dead Right There) individuals while on other calls, initially based on the smell.

My first on FTO was a guy who had closed all of his windows and used his gas oven to heat his little apartment. He had been in there a while, and when we finally opened the door at the behest of the Hotel manager (SRO-Single Room Occupancy hotel in SF's Tenderloin) the whole floor popped their heads out of their rooms to complain about the smell.

It was so warm though it was like he was in a crockpot for about a week, I remember his face because it reminded me of the Nazi character in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" at the end of the movie where his flesh just sort of melts off... Funny, or strange thing is that I have lost count of the number of deceased I have seen or had to deal with, and no longer remember any but the really exceptional cases.

[Fast4Door]

Not a law enforcement officer yet but I had my first DOA yesterday working as a volunteer firefighter. I responded to a 3 car MVA with minor injuries (thats what it was called in as). Turns out it involved a rollover with a jeep on its side and there was a dead guy in it with his head split in half :(. It was a sight I will remember forever, but I'm hoping seeing things like this will leave me better prepared for it when I enter the field someday. I'm hoping future DOAs will be downhill from what I saw already!

[Chit2001]

Had mine a few weeks ago. I'd been on DOA calls before, but not as the initiating/investigating officer. Nothing bothers me as much as the family. The family is who really gets me thinking.

[Looker]

I had 4 over summer '07.

My first was a 50 WMA that had a cardiac failure. Wife (a nurse) found him about 20 minutes later. He had a DNR. His daughter-in-law was there and tried initially to save him. It was her hubby's dad, who was away on business, but still... she was pretty upset as well.

#2 was a 18 WMA college kid who didn't make it out of the smoke filled apt. during a fire. Not burned, he stood up and got one breath of the toxic smoke and died 2 steps from his bed.

#3 & 4 were older women, both suicide. One with a .357 to the mouth, the other used a particular method taught in the book "The Final Exit" to get it done. Coroner said lots of older victims were using that book.

#1 and 2 were less than a week apart. I had a few bad dreams after #2. They went away after a day or two.

[TJMS81]

All of mine have been drownings. i can still picture the last guy, he'd been under for a few days, his skin had already started to slip and gave him a cone shaped head.

My sister-in-law was a firefighter/emt when she responded to a MVA with multiple fatalities and one vehicle fully engulfed in flames. She said it was very difficult to watch the occupants (3, I think) burn knowing there was nothing that could have been done to save them.

[scarney]

I have been on since Feb 08. First one was second day on patrol. She had gone in the water on late Monday, we found her Sunday. My second one was two weeks ago, single vehicle (motorcycle) accident. The first one, I washed my uniform about three times, before I couldn't smell it anymore.

[Smurfette_76]

Lesson #1- Don't put the Vick's UP your nose, put it under your nose. Hall's cough drops are also pretty good if you don't have Vicks.

Lesson B- Be wary when you show up and the Paramedics are outside throwing up. I had that one the other day. The rookie on the shift barrelled right past me. I tried to stop him. He came back out in a few seconds.

I get all the DBs on the shift...be them natural, self inflicted or otherwise. One of the joys of being the Investigator. You will eventually get the children. It's painful and nothing makes it easier. I had a 21 month old drown in a pool in July...mama was tired from her pot party the night before and didn't hear the child get up and open the door. I was filling her pictures away the other day...I cried for her again. So many things she could have been.

[GeorgiaDeputy]

My first was a nine year old boy who had some serious health issues. He had the ability of a six month old and they didn't expect him to live to be nine. I won't describe the way he looked when I got there, but that image didn't leave my mind for a long time. The parents were panicking and crying and I beat EMS there, and naturally had no idea what to do. I told the father to keep doing CPR as he was doing when I got there, even though I could tell the kid had been dead for a few hours. I didn't want to be the one to tell him his kid was gone. The kid's four grandparents came over to be with the parents, that kid had the most caring and loving family I have ever seen.

It definitely helped to talk about all that stuff with friends after it happened, got me through my first one.

[eternal911]

Or one that's been locked in a car, out in the sun for a few days.
Try two weeks in a 100 degree heat wave, that was a smelly one, he was even oozing through the bottom of the car...

[Decatur18]

mine was about a month ago...He had killed himself and was dead for two weeks before we found him, shot himself in the heart. Keep in mind I work in South East Tx, it gets a little warm around here. Add that to the fact that he was w/o power for 5 days because of the hurricane and you get some fun. He was a 160 pound white guy that looked like a 300 pound black guy. When the M.E. came to get him, his arms split open at the tricep and bunch of fluid splashed out. When they lifted his leg, it sounded as if someone turned on a faucet, a small hole had been punctured in his foot and all the fluid was pouring from there. The smell was pretty wonderful too....sorta like the steak that I left in my refrigerator while I didn't have power for a week.
The most fcked up part is we went to get some fast food after.