Study: Volunteers who handled the bombing dead more resilant than expected

<br>(Oklahoma City-AP) -- A new study says volunteers who sorted through body parts of the 168 people killed in the Oklahoma City bombing were more resilient than psychologists expected. <br><br>A University

Sunday, December 15th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

(Oklahoma City-AP) -- A new study says volunteers who sorted through body parts of the 168 people killed in the Oklahoma City bombing were more resilient than psychologists expected.

A University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center study says, levels of post-traumatic stress and depression were almost nonexistent two years after the 1995 bombing, even for those who knew one of the victims.

More than 130 people worked with the medical examiner's office over 17 days to identify victims and collect evidence.

Some of the volunteers, including medical students and dentists, knew someone who had died.

About 50 body handlers completed a hundred-item mail-in survey two years after the bombing.

Most said they coped by spending time with others and focusing on the positive.