In late 1996, visitors to the Erie County Courthouse (Erie, PA) were becoming ill and nauseated from rancid fumes emanating from the attached morgue. In some instances, county employees had to be sent home. Moreover, the problem was reported both in state newspapers and on national television news shows.
David Linaman, PE, CIPE, principal of Burt Hill Kosar Rittelmann Associates (Butler, PA, www.burthill.com), noticed the media attention, and he called Chief Deputy Coroner Donald Dunford. Linaman’s company had already executed a complete redesign of the morgue and pathology department at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and it was brought on board to find a comprehensive solution.