MASSIVE forensic resources will be dedicated to identifying bushfire victims but communities are being warned the devastation may be too great to identify some bodies.

A temporary morgue similar to the one used after the 2005 London terrorist bombings has been erected at the State Coronial Services Centre to accommodate the growing number of casualties.

Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine director Professor Stephen Cordner said identification would take time.
He warned families and communities some victims too badly burnt would not be positively identified.

"It is important that people appreciate the effects of fire make the elements that we rely upon to help identify in some cases impossible to achieve," Professor Cordner told reporters in Melbourne.

He said the institute would accept assistance from colleagues across Australia after "overwhelming" offers of help.
Forensic staff were humbled by what victims had endured, Professor Cordner said.

"Victorians and Australians, you should feel reassured that your loved ones are in good hands.

"The staff we've got have the human qualities to deal with this in a calm and dignified way."

Coroner Jennifer Coate said 101 victims were admitted to the morgue by this morning.

"We are engaged in an unprecedented enormously medically, scientifically and legally complex task," Justice Coate said.

"And to get that right, to ensure that we respect the dignity of all of those people that have now come into our care and to give the answers to the families who have been bereaved by this tragedy, we are going to give every single person that's come into our care as much expertise as we can garner in this nation to ensure that we've got right the identity of those persons ... and the tasks of ensuring we understand what's happened to them."

AAP