In terrorist attacks and industrial catastrophes, management of a massive afflux of wounded must adhere to logistic imperatives while at the same time taking into account basic traumatology principles. This implies a firm, unequivocal, and precise doctrine for all stages of care. Medical and surgical triage allows a logical classification of victims according to severity of injury, the necessity of treatment and the degree of urgency. Triage should be early, dynamic, and lead to a categorization that optimally utilizes resources while ensuring efficient management.