Dead Bodies Under Water

skelly · Feb 3, 2007

Standard disclaimer: I've searched here and google. It may be my poor choice of search terms, but I'm not finding anything. If somebody knows of a thread or link I missed could, you please point me in the right direction?

What I need to know ... If a 12-year-old girl was murdered and then sunk with a lot of weight in a really large (and deep) farm pond, would there still be some remains for the cops to dredge up 60 years later, when my MC's solve the mystery? A skeleton, at least? And along the same lines, if the girl's parents were buried in a basement and then a concrete floor was hastily laid, there would still be some skeletal remains 60 years later, right?

Does anybody know anything about this? Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions.
--Scott

Vanatru · Feb 3, 2007

Bones would be there.....for both cases. Of course, for the pond, they might be spread out over the bottom due to water motion, fish, critters, etc.

Mom and Dad would be skeletons.

We had an insurgent that was shot, he fell into a deep ditch that had about three feet of water in it. No one ever fished his body out. A year later, the skeleton is still in the bottom of it. Saw it when it was fresh, and saw it when it was bones. Kinda of an interesting contrast. That was within the last two years. The ditch was about 6 maybe 7 feet deep with steep sides. It had very little disturbance to it. The bones shifted a bit down to flash rains swirling through, but no more than a foot at most.

scarletpeaches · Feb 3, 2007

Couldn't you turn her into a 'bloater and floater'?

Man, I've always wanted to use that in a post.

skelly · Feb 3, 2007

~crackle~
"Uh, unit 15, say again?"
~crackle~
"Sir I said we've got a floating bloater. We need the medical examiner on scene right away."
~crackle~
"Roger that."

scarletpeaches · Feb 3, 2007

Tea. Nose. Computer screen.

Maryn · Feb 3, 2007

A heartbreaking case about five years ago in the area where I live involved a couple encasing their (living) newborn in concrete in a plastic 5-gallon painter's bucket, which they took with them each time they moved. The remains were fairly well preserved after 15 years, if I recall correctly. Enough to put them both in jail for the rest of their lives.

Maryn, who just doesn't get some people

skelly · Feb 3, 2007

Good Lord. You just gave me a great idea though. Thanks.

johnnysannie · Feb 3, 2007

Not the same as underwater but in the news there was a recent case of a mummified infant found inside a suitcase in a storage unit in Florida. If I remember the details, a daughter was clearing out items from a storage unit rented by her parents and the child's remains were found inside a suitcase.

The story I saw was on the CNN home page - I'm sure it could be found.

It might stir your - or someone's - imagination!

PattiTheWicked · Feb 3, 2007

Mummified Baby's Remains Haunt Police

I read this yesterday, and thought it was just so sad. Wonder what the story is behind it.

AmyBA · Feb 3, 2007

Oh my gosh-- I cannot imagine what that poor woman who found the suitcase must have gone through....

As far as the original question, what if you had the murderer wrap the body in a sheet or canvas drop-cloth or something? Would that prevent decomposition/scattering of remains enough so that there'd be something left 60 years on?

PattiTheWicked · Feb 3, 2007

You should ask this guy: http://www.dplylemd.com/forcomm.html

Bookmark his site, too -- there's a TON of great stuff on there, although it's probably not for the squeamish.

skelly · Feb 3, 2007

Bookmarked it. Thanks PTW, that's good stuff.

Liam Jackson · Feb 3, 2007

skelly said:
~crackle~
"Uh, unit 15, say again?"
~crackle~
"Sir I said we've got a floating bloater. We need the medical examiner on scene right away."
~crackle~
"Roger that."

This may sound a little odd, but you're damned near dead on the nose. (No pun intended...okay, so it was intended.)

Bloated Floater. Heard (and used) the term with some regularity "back in the day." Came from working the Arkansas and Mississippi rivers as a county deputy. Always used a tactical channel to call for a coroner (meat inspector)

scarletpeaches · Feb 3, 2007

Liam Jackson said:
This may sound a little odd, but you're damned near dead on the nose...

Uh, pardon me, but I believe I was the one who first raised the subject of bloater 'n' floater.

Vincent · Feb 3, 2007

Yes, scarletpeaches, well done.

PattiTheWicked · Feb 4, 2007

Liam Jackson said:
Bloated Floater. Heard (and used) the term with some regularity "back in the day." Came from working the Arkansas and Mississippi rivers as a county deputy. Always used a tactical channel to call for a coroner (meat inspector)

When I worked in EMS, one of my favorite terms was a "drop & flop", which was a call to someone who'd had a seizure. The ER guys always had the best ones, though: A gomer was "get out of my emergency room".

And if your unit was gone 10-17-75, it meant you were going to get lunch.

Dead Bodies Under Water

skelly

Kickin it old school, posers beware

Vanatru

practical experience, FTW

scarletpeaches

skelly

Kickin it old school, posers beware

scarletpeaches

Maryn

At Sea

skelly

Kickin it old school, posers beware

johnnysannie

PattiTheWicked

Unleashing Hell.

AmyBA

I'm a believer

PattiTheWicked

Unleashing Hell.

skelly

Kickin it old school, posers beware

Liam Jackson

Heathen Horde Elder

scarletpeaches

Vincent

Cheers

PattiTheWicked

Unleashing Hell.