Dentist in land of the tsunami

Dirk van der Meer was able to see with his own eyes the devastation caused by a 35-foot high wave that slammed into the Thai coastline around Khao Lak, which resulted in the deaths of at least 4,000 people and left a permanent scar of death and destruction.
"The wave there was 11 meters and it went inland and it was so devastating that a lot of those places have not been fixed ... buildings are just shells ... litter strewn everywhere and boats right up against houses, even four months after the tsunami," said the 38-year-old Armstrong dentist.
Dr. van der Meer returned from Thailand on Friday, May 13, after spending just over three weeks as a forensic dentist along with Dr. Glenn Keryluk of Coquitlam, B.C. in Phukat, Thailand on the Indian Ocean as part of the BC/FORT (British Columbia Forensic Odontology Research Team), and sponsored by Foreign Affairs Canada.
Even at Phukat, van der Meer was constantly reminded that even the small island just south of Khao Lak had experienced the deadly force of December 26, 2004.
"At the Sheraton, in Phukat, approximately 27 people were killed at the beach and six of the rooms were damaged," he said.
Being called in to assist in the identification of disaster victims wasn't foreign to van der Meer, who had trained for a number of years to meet such a challenge.
"The story is when the tsunami hit, there was a call for help from Thailand and Foreign Affairs Canada sent an RCMP "go" team over there and they decided some dentists and fingerprint experts were needed in the identification of the victims," explained van der Meer.
Dr. David Sweet from the Bureau of Legal Dentistry in Vancouver and one of the leading forensic dentists in the world, was then approached and, immediately, was able to provide a group of dentists, all highly trained in the forensics field.
Dr. van der Meer has had BC/FORT training both in the classroom and hands-on experience and "a lot of it is learning computer systems and computer software," he said.
"Initially when the tsunami struck we had no idea we would be going, but when the numbers started rolling in and that up to 200,000 people had perished, there was some talk in our group -- of 15 to 20 dentists -- that, maybe, we could help out."
In February, 2005, van der Meer was doing a lecture with Dr. Sweet and he said, 'we may be sending people, and asked me if I was willing to go.' I said, 'Of course, just tell me when and where.'"
Dr. van der Meer said that Dr. Tom Rutledge, the president of BC/FORT from Coquitlam, had been one of the first trained forensic dentists in Thailand after the tsunami disaster struck and it was agreed that there would be a three-week rotation for the dentists, six-week rotation for the fingerprint experts and seven-week rotation for RCMP officers.
On Friday, April 22, he and Dr. Keryluk left from Vancouver for Tokyo and then on to Bangkok before taking a Thai jet to Phukat, and replaced Dr. David Hodges from Prince George, B.C. and Dr. Stan Cogan from Ontario, who had already left Thailand for Canada.
Fortunately, Dr. Sweet was there to show van der Meer and Keryluk the ropes.
Dr. van der Meer was actually surprised by the international response, in which 26 different countries and their teams were involved in the identification process.
"I spent most of my time working in front of a computer with the PLASSDATA program, designed by a Danish company, trying to match antemortem (before) and postmortem (after) data. The site in a TOT (Telephone Organization Centre of Thailand) and managed by TIVI-IMC (Thailand Tsunami Victim Information Management Centre) was used for comparing data in the computer.
Did you see any of the bodies? I asked
"Yes, I did," he said. "I spent some time in the morgue, usually working with a group of British dentists, doing some final releases." This meant that when the body is identified, there is a protocol to release that body, which includes doing a final dental exam before it is released to the next-of-kin or to the mortician."
In a typical day, Dr. van der Meer said they would leave from the Sheraton at about 7:25 and 40 minutes later they would arrive at the TOT site. "We started working at about 8 o'clock and kept working until about 4 in the afternoon."
Would you be willing to go back? I asked.
"I'd go back in a minute if they asked me," he answered. "It was quite an experience. I won't say I enjoyed it because that would be inappropriate, but I certainly valued the experience ... if not life changing, at least it was attitude changing, that's for sure."
He added that Foreign Affairs Canada are still sending dentists from Canada to Thailand until, at least, September 8, and then they intend to re-evaluate the situation.
The father of two daughters, Aleen, 11, and Chloe, 6, Dr. van der Meer, whose wife, Jodi, is the vice-principal of Armstrong elementary school, added: "I am not scheduled to go yet, but they are sending people on a second tour. So if they extend it beyond September, I have told them I would be willing to go at anytime."