Forensic Science International 306 (2020) 110033

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Forensic Science International

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/forsciint

Effect of arson fires on survivability of entomological evidence on

carcasses inside vehicle trunks
Stacey L. Malainey, Gail S. Anderson*
School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Article history: Three vehicles with trunks containing pig (Sus scrofa domesticus Erxleben) carcasses which had been
Received 6 July 2019 allowed to decompose for 30 days, were set alight in controlled burns to determine whether forensically
Received in revised form 27 October 2019 valuable insect evidence could still be recovered. Each car trunk contained the remains of a carcass,
Accepted 29 October 2019
together with its associated carrion insect fauna. An insect collection was performed prior to the fires.
Available online 4 November 2019
Each car was then set alight using a small amount of gasoline as an accelerant, poured onto the driver’s
seat, lit by a burning stick. The fire was allowed to reach its peak before being extinguished. In all cases,
Keywords:
the fires completely destroyed the vehicles. The vehicles were examined the following day and insect
Forensic entomology
Car trunks
evidence was collected. In all cases, large amounts of burned, charred and undamaged insect evidence
Arson remained, including identifiable prepuparial 3rd instar larvae, live pupae inside intact puparia and empty
Southwestern British Columbia puparial cases. As well bones and unburned clothing were also intact. One car did not burn as well as the
others with the fire not involving the trunk area as much as in the other cars. Once the fire was
extinguished, it was clear that the reason for this was the presence of a steel fire wall, between the
passenger compartment and the trunk. This reduced the spread of the fire to the trunk and increased
evidence survival. However, in all vehicles, insect evidence survived, which could still be used to estimate
the period of insect colonization and thereby infer the minimum elapsed time since death. The evidence
was also a clear indicator that the decedent had not died in the fire. After the fire, the carcass remains
were still attractive to blow fly adults (Diptera: Calliphoridae). In car fire cases it is important to consider
that entomological evidence may still be just as useful in the investigation as in non-burned cases.
© 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Killers since time immemorial have used a variety of methods to
dispose of the bodies of their victims. Bodies are frequently thrown
into water, buried or set on fire in order to get rid of them [1]. Fire is
a particularly attractive proposition as it is believed to not only
destroy evidence but also prevent the identification of the victim
which, if known, may tie them to their killer. Arson is a crime that
requires no complicated equipment, knowledge or skill, so is
frequently used to cover up a homicide [1–4]. This is referred to as a
‘crime concealment’ arson in which the fire was a result of a
secondary motive; to destroy evidence, in comparison with the
primary motive, which was the homicide [5, p2]. In a retrospective
study in France, 31 % of fires involving human bodies were as a
result of a criminal act in which the body was set on fire to cover up
* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: stacey.malainey@gmail.com (S.L. Malainey), ganderso@sfu.ca
(G.S. Anderson).
the homicide, destroy evidence and the identity of the victim and
in 16 % of cases, the fires were suicide-related [6]. In some cases,
fire may be a back-up suicide plan, in case the first does not succeed
[7]. Although numbers of homicides are generally on the decline,
numbers of arson-related deaths are on the increase, with 29 % of
such fire-related cases in Australia resulting from attempts to
destroy the evidence [8].
Human cadavers are frequently located in vehicles and
consequently colonized by carrion insects. Carrion insects are
extremely adept at locating carrion even when it is confined,
wrapped or concealed, for example, in a car trunk. An analysis of
the insects on the cadaver can be instrumental in estimating the
elapsed time since death or minimum post-mortem interval
(minPMI). Suicidal deaths are often committed in vehicles due, in
the past, to the ease of use of carbon monoxide [9–11], however
since the advent of the catalytic converter to reduce emissions,
such deaths have become less common [12]. Despite this, suicidal
self-immolation still occurs in cars [13,14]. Natural and accidental
deaths may also occur inside vehicles [15,16] but the focus of this
study is on homicidal deaths, which may occur in the vehicle [17]

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2019.110033
0379-0738/© 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
2 S.L. Malainey, G.S. Anderson / Forensic Science International 306 (2020) 110033
or more probably, the vehicle may be used as a dumping site in
which the body is transported, usually in the trunk, to a remote
location and then abandoned in the vehicle [1].
In many cases, the car and its contents may simply be
abandoned [18]. The car may also be immediately set on fire,
with the intention of destroying the body to avoid possible
identification [1,19]. Alternatively, the car and contents may be
abandoned then later ignited.
The objectives of this study were to determine whether insects
which have already colonized carrion placed inside vehicle trunks
would survive the full immolation of the vehicle and could still be
recovered and analyzed to provide a minPMI. [20].
2. Materials and methods
Three older model cars were obtained from the Justice Institute
of British Columbia (JIBC) Fire and Safety Division, in Maple Ridge,
B.C. Car #1 was a dark blue 1993 Mercury Topaz; Car #2 was a
maroon 1991 Pontiac Bonneville and Car #3 was a grey 1992
Pontiac Sunbird. Inside the trunk of each vehicle, a freshly killed
25–32 kg pig (Sus scrofa domesticus Erxleben) was placed. The pigs
were killed with a single pin-gunshot to the head (SFU Animal Care
Protocol Number 8051-06). Each carcass was dressed in similar
clothing consisting of plaid boxer shorts, red t-shirts and cargo
shorts, as clothing or cloth material is frequently associated with
homicide victims and can impact insect colonization patterns [18].
Each vehicle was originally situated in a nearby forest in the
Coastal Western Hemlock Biogeoclimatic Zone, Dry Maritime
Subzone [21] in Maple Ridge, B.C. Canada (approximately 45 km
east of Vancouver, BC) to compare decomposition and insect
colonization between these carcasses and three control carcasses
which were exposed in the forest, published elsewhere [22].
The carcasses were allowed to decompose for 30 days, then the
vehicles were moved by tow truck to the safe burning site at the
JIBC Fire and Safety Division on 22 August 2007.
On the day of the fires, each carcass was carefully assessed and
photographed. Prior to the fires, small samples of insects were
collected from the carcasses, the trunks and the passenger areas of
the cars. Adults were preserved immediately in ETOH and the
immature insects were raised to adulthood. Adult blow flies were
identified using dichotomous keys [23]. The remains and the vast
majority of insects were then left inside each car trunk and the
trunk closed.
JIBC Fire and Safety staff set all fires. Each car was set alight
separately by placing 500 mL of gasoline as an accelerant onto the
front driver’s seat of each vehicle. The front windows were rolled
down slightly to allow oxygen flow. Once started, the fires were
allowed to build themselves naturally. Once the fire reached a
peak size and heat, as judged by the JIBC Fire and Safety staff, the
car fires were each extinguished. Fire and Safety personnel
informed us that, once this peak was reached, allowing
continuation of burning until they self-extinguished would not
do substantially more damage compared with dousing the flames
with water [24]. The cars fires were all doused with plain water,
using a firefighter 2.5 in. (6.35 cm) diameter hose and a task force
nozzle. The trunk itself was not opened during fire extinguish-
ment, so the carcasses and insects in the trunks were not directly
exposed to the spray. The cars were sprayed mostly with a wide
spray, that was similar to that used in a real car fire and was not
directed into the vehicle so did not directly impact the car’s
interior. No thermocouples were placed in the vehicles, but JIBC
Fire and Safety Staff estimated temperatures throughout the
burns, based on experience.
After the fires were extinguished, the cars were left secured for
24 h to allow them to cool and for noxious fumes to be naturally
vented. Following this, each vehicle was photographed and
carefully examined for any insect evidence including the trunk
as well as the rest of the vehicle. Burned debris was carefully sifted
throughout each vehicle and insects collected.
3. Results
3.1. Carcasses and vehicles before fires
The carcasses had been allowed to decompose inside the
vehicle trunks for 30 days prior to the start of the present
experiment and, during this time, insect samples had been
collected twice a week, published elsewhere [22].
Pig 1, inside the 1993 Mercury Topaz, was entirely skeletonized
(Fig. 1). Thousands of dead and live adult Phormia regina (Meigen)
and Protophormia terraenovae (R.-D.) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) were
present inside the passenger and trunk areas of the car, having
developed on the carcass in very large numbers. Many live pupae
inside intact puparia and empty puparia were found throughout
the vehicle, but primarily in the front of the passenger area,
embedded in carpet and sometimes several specimens deep. Some
prepuparial 3rd instar larvae were also found in the vehicle.
Pig 2, inside the Pontiac Bonneville, was still in active decay
with much of the soft tissue still remaining (Fig. 1). Some live
calliphorid pupae inside intact puparia were collected but many
feeding 3rd instar larvae were still present in a maggot mass on the
carcass. Much fewer individual insects were present on this carcass
than either Pig 1 or Pig 3. Live Piophilidae (Diptera) pupae inside
intact puparia were also found along the rim of the trunk. No
insects were found inside the passenger compartment of the
vehicle. Throughout the earlier experiment, it was noted that Pig 2
decomposed at a slower rate and attracted fewer insects than
either Pigs 1 or 3 [22].
Pig 3, inside the Pontiac Sunbird, was entirely skeletonized
(Fig. 1). As with Pig 1, thousands of dead and live adult P. regina and
Pr. terraenovae were present in the vehicle, with large numbers of
live calliphorid pupae inside intact puparia and empty puparia
present throughout the vehicle. The largest number of insects were
present in this vehicle.
3.2. Fires
Car #1, the Topaz, was ignited first using a burning stick to ignite
the gasoline on the driver’s seat. The door was left slightly open to
allow oxygen to fuel the fire. Black smoke quickly filled the
windows but five minutes after the fire was set, smoke was still the
only overt sign visible, with wisps creeping out of the driver’s side
window. Fifteen minutes after the fire was lit, the fire was classified
as smoldering, and the smoke coming out of the slightly open
windows was white (Video 1). After a further five minutes,
the glass in the front windshield began to distort, giving the
impression of ‘bubbles’. Smoke was present in the trunk and the
exterior of the trunk was warm to the touch. Smoke also started
appearing underneath the vehicle. After 25 min of burning it
appeared that the fire was running out of oxygen and was starting
to extinguish itself. At this time, a trained JIBC Fire Academy
professional opened the driver’s side door to provide more oxygen.
As soon as the door was opened, the fire began roaring to life and
progressed quickly (Video 2). The horn began blaring as wires were
shorted (Video 3), the windshield cracked, and the four side
windows exploded. By 30 min after ignition, the car was fully
involved, and the paint started to strip from the exterior of the
vehicle. Within minutes of opening the door and increasing the
interior oxygen levels, the trunk and the top of the car was on fire.
Temperature estimates made 38 min after ignition placed the
core of the vehicle at 815  C (1500  F) and the trunk at 485  C
(900  F). By this time the fire had melted through the passenger
 S.L. Malainey, G.S. Anderson / Forensic Science International 306 (2020) 110033
Fig. 1. Comparison of pig carcasses in car trunks before and after the fires.
and rear door, and the fire was burning the underneath of the
vehicle (Video 4). The rear tires blew at 39 min. as the compressed
strut gave way (Video 5). At 41 min the temperature of the fire had
receded a little and was estimated at 650–700  C (1200–1300  F).
The ground underneath the vehicle was on fire. The gas tank
exploded after 48 min followed by the front tires blowing out.
JIBC Fire Academy Professional Fire Trainers informed us that
once the tires had exploded, the fire was essentially complete. Of
the 47 min that this car was on fire, only 15 min or so were
considered a ‘quality’ burn by the JIBC Fire Academy Professional
Fire Trainers. The smoldering witnessed before the door was
completely opened was not considered ‘good’ burning, and this
would have extinguished itself had the door not been opened. As
such, with the following fires it was decided to open the door fully
upon igniting the fire. This served to rapidly increase the fire
progression, with the remaining two cars completing the burn
cycle in 15 min for Car #3 and just over 30 min for Car #2.
Differences in burn pattern were noticed between the progres-
sion of Cars #1 and #3 compared with Car #2. The fire in Car #2 was
3
localized to the body of the car, with the trunk not burning as much
(Video 6). The left corner of Car #2 displayed noticeably less charring
than the same spot on the other two vehicles. The body of the car
displayed consistent burning for all three vehicles, though the
burning of the trunk in Car #2 showed a pronounced difference.
Upon extinguishing this fire, it was discovered that Car #2 had a steel
fire wall behind the rear seat. In contrast, Cars #1 and #3 had only
wire meshing separating the trunk and rear seat. This steel backing
on Car #2 served as a fire wall to the rear compartment, preventing
fire access, and was a feature of this type of car, designed specifically
to prevent fire spread.
3.3. Carcasses and insects after fires
In all cases, the vehicles were essentially destroyed by the fire.
All paint was burned off, tires had blown, and every vehicle was
blackened by the fires. The interior of each vehicle became a
collection of debris as remnants of melted glass and other items
were found throughout the passenger area of the vehicles.
4 S.L. Malainey, G.S. Anderson / Forensic Science International 306 (2020) 110033
The trunk of Car #1 showed large amounts of destruction post-
burn (Fig. 1). Pig 1 had burnt intact pupae inside intact puparia
along the top of the clothes. The remaining clothing was very
fragile and fractured when touched. Under the first layer of
clothing, dead but un-charred, heat-killed pupae inside intact
puparia and 3rd instar larvae were recovered (Fig. 1). Bones
remained, with pupae inside intact puparia and larvae stuck to
them. Burnt adult flies were found under the clothing, sandwiched
between the skin and clothing. The shorts still retained the smell of
decomposition, with new adult blow flies attracted to the odors. In
the passenger area of the car amongst the debris, prepuparial 3rd
instar calliphorid larvae, pupae inside intact puparia and empty
puparia were still present in the driver’s side floor area. None of the
insects were living.
The trunk of Car 3 was damaged during the fire and was
propped open during collection. All insects were dead. Pig 3 in Car
#3 still had a substantial number of pupae inside intact puparia
throughout the clothing. A small maggot mass was present in the
shorts of this pig, with only the top layer completely blackened
(Fig. 1). The bones were covered in a greenish wet material and
retained a pungent smell of decomposition. Along the left side of
the trunk, pupae inside intact puparia and pupal casings were still
present. On the floor of the front drivers’ side of Car #3, pupae
inside intact puparia and empty puparia were collected. While the
charred pupal casings were very fragile to the touch, they were still
identifiable as puparia and indicative of a complete blow fly life
cycle. Additional empty puparia and pupae inside intact puparia
were found in the back seat behind the drivers’ side. More insects
were found in Car #3 than in the other cars, hence more insects
remained after the fire.
Pig 2 in Car #2 was quite different as it was still in active
decomposition when it was burned, in comparison with both Pigs 1
and 3 which were skeletonized. Burnt larvae were abundant on
the clothing, and unburned dead larvae were discovered under the
shirt on the bones (Fig. 1). During the insect collection from
the vehicle post-burn, an adult blow fly was observed landing on
the exposed bone. Pupae inside intact puparia were found
underneath the spare tire covering, as well as a burnt beetle from
the family Histeridae. During collection approximately ten adult
blow flies were attracted to the remains, some landing on the
cracked skin of the charred pig.
The pupae inside intact puparia and empty puparia that were
recovered after the fires were extremely fragile. Such evidence is,
by its very nature, normally very fragile but charring greatly
increased this.
4. Discussion
4.1. Survivability of insect remains after fire
Despite extensive burning of the cars, a remarkable amount of
material, including unburned clothing, bones, as well as identifi-
able insects, were recovered from all three carcasses. This is similar
to that seen on carrion in a burned house in Alberta in which three
freshly killed pig carcasses were allowed to decompose to the
advanced decay stage, then the house was set on fire and allowed
to extinguish naturally [25]. Thermocouples indicated that the fire
reached between 900–1000  C (1652–2012  F) [25]. Despite this,
not only were undamaged calliphorid larvae, pupae inside intact
puparia and empty puparia on and close to the carcass recovered
intact and identifiable, but a few live Pr. terraenovae were recovered
between the carcass’s legs and were raised to adulthood in the lab
to prove viability [25]. Therefore, it is not uncommon to be able to
recover undamaged entomological evidence after a fire, as was also
found in the present study, although no live insects were recovered
here. Such insect evidence proves that the victim did not die in the
fire and provides an estimate of the length of time which had
elapsed from death to the start of the fire. These house fires were
part of an experimental study, but they closely mirror a case from
the UK [26].
As we extinguished the fires in the present study rather than
allowing them to burn out, it could be suggested that the
entomological evidence might have been entirely destroyed if
the fires had been allowed to burn themselves out naturally. This
was not tested in the present study but was tested in the earlier
house fire experiments, in which the fire was left to burn itself out
naturally. Despite this, substantial entomological evidence was
recovered from all pig carcasses including those that had been
incinerated twice in earlier parts of the experiment. All stages of
insects that were known to be present before the fires were still
evident and identifiable [25]. Therefore, the fact that insects could
still be recovered from the car trunks and passenger areas indicates
that insects and their remains are likely to be recoverable from a
car fire.
4.2. Impact of fire wall
Pigs 1 and 3 were very similar, with both carcasses skeletonized
prior to the burn, but Pig 2 was very different throughout the pre-
burn study. All three cars, together with their carcasses were
placed in the forest and allowed to decompose for the same length
of time, 30 days. In fact, Car #3 was the least shaded during this
earlier experiment so internal car temperatures, although higher
than ambient during the day in all cars, was 5 to 10  C higher in Car
#3 than in Cars #1 or #2. Yet carcasses decomposed and were
colonized by insects in an almost identical manner in Cars #1 and
#3 [22]. Pig 2 in Car #2 was colonized by much fewer insects and
consequently decomposed much more slowly than the other
carcasses, and appeared instead, to almost mummify in places.
Interestingly, Car #2 also burned quite differently with less fire
seen at the trunk region, less charring of the outside of the back of
the car and more time required to reach a peak. At the time of the
earlier experiments and before the fire, the reasons for this were
unknown. However, once the burns were complete, a probable
cause was clear: Car #2 alone had a solid metal fire wall behind
the rear passenger seat, designed to prevent the spread of fire from
the trunk to the passenger area. It is highly probable that it was this
wall that first reduced the numbers of carrion insects that were
initially able to access the carcass, and so slowed down
decomposition, as the presence of carrion insects has been shown
to speed up decomposition in comparison with carcasses that are
not colonized [27–29]. Secondly, the fire wall appeared to do ‘its’
job’ in that it did reduce the impacts of the fire. Nevertheless,
identifiable insect evidence was recoverable from Car #2 just as in
Cars #1 and #3.
The fire wall also resulted in less decomposition in Pig 2 than
the other carcasses, so a lot of soft tissue remained. The impact of
fire on bone has been shown to be different in carcasses in different
stages of decomposition [30] so an examination of the skeletal
elements can be used to indicate the level of decomposition prior
to immolation [30].
4.3. Effect of blow fly dispersal patterns
In previous research inside a house, full and empty puparia
from larvae that had traveled away from the carcass were usually
destroyed and only those that pupariated close to the remains were
protected by the remains and survived [25]. Blow fly prepuparial
3rd instar larvae leave the carrion substrate in order to locate a
suitable pupariation site so are frequently found a distance away
from the remains. The distance prepuparial 3rd instar larvae
dipserse depends on many abiotic and biotic factors such as species
 S.L. Malainey, G.S. Anderson / Forensic Science International 306 (2020) 110033
and the substrate on which they are moving [31–33]. Protophormia
terraenovae, for example, has been noted to pupariate close to the
carrion [19,34–36] whereas Lucilia sericata (Meigen) often
disperses much further [37,38]. This could mean that species that
travel the least distance from the remains might preferentially
survive a fire and therefore, potentially skew a minPMI analysis. In
the present studies it might also be expected that insects in the
trunk would be better protected from the fire by the enclosure of
the trunk than those in the passenger area, however, in this study,
pupae inside intact puparia and empty puparia were collected
from both the trunk and the passenger area of the cars. As well, due
to the confinement of the carcass in the trunk, prepuparial 3rd
instar larvae had been unable to exit the vehicle and had been
forced to pupariate and emerge within the vehicle. Thus, an
extremely large number of immature insects and empty puparia
were present in the vehicles pre-burn which probably increased
the chances of recovery. One of the carcasses in the earlier house
fire experiments had decomposed in a metal bathtub so, prior to
the fire, the carcass was surrounded by full and empty puparia
from insects which had been unable to escape the smooth sides of
the bathtub so had pupated in situ. Therefore, the insects were
about 10 cm deep in the bathtub before the fire was set. After the
complete immolation of the house, much of the insect remains
from inside the bathtub were still present and identifiable, despite
the fire having burned the bathroom floor, the tub and contents
falling into the basement and the fire burning the longest under the
tub [39]. Therefore, the abundance of insect remains in the bathtub
in that study and the vehicles in this study may have increased the
propensity for insect evidence survival. However, it is clear that
insect evidence is likely to survive a fire even in low numbers as far
fewer insect specimens were present on Car #2, yet abundant
insect remains were collected post-burn.
In the house fires discussed earlier, the carcasses themselves
were all in active decay so a certain amount of biomass was still
present. As entomological remains were only recovered near the
carcasses, it was assumed that the carcasses provided some
protection. Indeed, in one case, live insect larvae were recovered
[25]. However, in the present study, Pigs 1 and 3 were completely
skeletonized, with only bones and clothing left and Pig 2 was in
active decay. However, insects were collected from all three
carcasses and their vehicles so insect remains can clearly survive
even when the pig remains were skeletonized.
4.4. Potential for secondary colonization
During the post-burn collection, the charred remains of Pig 2
were still attractive to blow flies, particularly at areas of cracked
skin, and would probably have been colonized had the remains not
been disposed of at the end of the experiment. Other studies have
shown that burned remains will still be colonized by blow flies
[40–42] and if burning causes skin cracking (Crow-Glassman Scale
(CGS) Level #2 [43]), may be more attractive than unburned
carrion as the cracking in the skin increases oviposition sites
[40,44]. In the house fires in Alberta, blow flies were attracted to
bodies while parts of the house still remained on fire [25].
Similarly, in Hawai’i, blow flies landed on unburned portions of
remains while other parts remained on fire [40]. In Italy, in
homicide cases in which bodies were placed in cars then set alight
to destroy evidence, adult blow flies were found to be attracted in
large numbers to the viscera exposed by the burning of the thorax
and abdominal walls [45].
Fire may also impact the physical characteristics of the
body, potentially destroying the usual oviposition sites yet
opening up new and less usual areas for oviposition [26,45].
The first could delay insect colonization and the second could
speed it up. In Louisiana, in unpublished experiments by Lamar
5
Meek, blow fly colonization of pig carcasses in car trunks was
delayed for three days after death, but the delay was increased
to seven days when pig carcasses were placed in car trunks and
then the cars burned [46].
If a body is allowed to decompose for a period of time before a
fire is set, as was seen in this study as well as others [25], then the
surviving insect remains can be used to show that the victim did
not succumb to the fire and can indicate an estimated minPMI,
based on the species and stage of development of the insects on the
remains, as in a more usual forensic entomology case. If the fire
itself does not alert authorities and the remains and burned vehicle
remain undiscovered for a period of time, it is probable that what is
left of the body will be secondarily colonized by carrion insects. In
such cases, it should be possible to not only indicate the minimum
length of time that the remains were present in the vehicle before
the fire, but to also use the secondarily colonizing insects to
indicate the minimum time since the fire was set. In a case in the
US, the minPMI of a body found in a burned out car was estimated
using the cooked blow fly larvae found inside the brains of the
victim, but live larvae found on the burned remains, the result of a
secondary colonization after the fire, were also used to establish
when the fire was lit [47].
4.5. Impact on forensic entomological collection and analyses
Entomological evidence clearly can persist through a fire, as
was seen in these car fires and has been seen after other fires
[25,26]. However, the surviving insect remains are much more
fragile than live insects, or fresh puparia, which themselves are
already delicate. If a fire is deliberately extinguished, then the
insects will be very wet, and if not collected immediately, will
rapidly degrade. Therefore, it is more than usually important that
a forensic entomologist is asked to attend the scene to collect the
evidence. However, if the collection is performed very shortly
after the fire is extinguished, the water together with the heat of
the fire actually hot-water kills larvae as is recommended prior to
preservation in ETOH [48], so is less damaging than might be
expected. Pupae inside intact puparia and empty puparia
however, become even more brittle than normal so must be
handled by an experienced collector, preferably a forensic
entomologist.
5. Conclusions
Arson intended as a crime concealment, although destructive,
may not destroy forensically valuable entomological evidence, as
this study has shown. Properly collected, entomological evidence
can be important to, first, potentially indicate that the victim did
not die in the fire, second, provide an estimate of the minPMI and, if
a secondary colonization occurs then, third provide an estimate of
the time of the fire. Caution must be exercised when considering
later successionally colonizing species as the fire may disrupt their
normal patterns of colonization. Entomological remains survived
equally on remains in car trunks which were completely
skeletonized as on remains in active decay. Even entomological
remains which had dispersed throughout the passenger compart-
ment of the vehicles survived. The fire wall in one vehicle not only
reduced access for insects to the carcass in the trunk originally, it
also limited the fire damage and the fire took longer to reach full
burn.
CRediT authorship contribution statement
Stacey L. Malainey: Methodology, Formal analysis, Investiga-
tion, Data curation, Writing - original draft, Writing - review &
editing, Visualization, Funding acquisition. Gail S. Anderson:
6 S.L. Malainey, G.S. Anderson / Forensic Science International 306 (2020) 110033
Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing - original draft, Writing -
review & editing, Visualization, Supervision, Project administra-
tion, Funding acquisition.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the B.C. Provincial Government, Office of
the Fire Commission for partially funding this project and Dr. Dean
Hildebrand from the British Columbia Institute of Technology
(BCIT) for providing access to the BCIT Woodlot, as well as the
Woodlot staff for their help. We would also like to thank the staff of
the Justice Institute of British Columbia (JIBC) Fire and Safety
Division for donating the cars and allowing us access to the Fire and
Safety Division facilities, specifically Timothy Lee for his aid in the
planning stages, Barb Kidd for allowing access to the Fire and
Safety Division facilities to conduct the burns, Larry Watkinson and
Tom Jones for their assistance during the burns and Shawn Crump
with assistance in moving the vehicles. We also would like to thank
Alyssa Von Wittgenstein, Stephanie Dawson and Christina
McAuley for their assistance as volunteer field assistants during
the collections.
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary material related to this article can be found, in the
online version, at doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2019.110033.
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