WHAT’S BEING CLAIMED:
- Funeral services and other ceremonies are now banned in Italy as the COVID-19 death toll number continues to increase.
- The coronavirus victims die alone in hospital isolation because of the high risk of disease infection for everyone else.
- The military has intervened as burials overwhelm mortuaries, churches, and cemeteries.
Italy has passed an emergency national law that bans civil and religious ceremonies, including funerals as the coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate the country. The law puts in place guidelines that prohibit assemblies in hopes to try and stop the spread of the disease as the country becomes the epicenter of the coronavirus in Europe.
This is an unprecedented situation for Italy whose people are predominantly catholic.
So far, there are more than 74,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases with over 7,500 dead in Italy, the highest death toll worldwide. The coronavirus victims die alone in hospital isolation because of the high risk of disease infection for everyone else. It is also likely that family members and close friends are already put under quarantine for being in contact with the patient before the latter tested positive for the virus.
The isolation goes on. The families are no longer authorized to dress the deceased before burial, no option to brush their hair, apply make-up or leave a note inside the coffin. The bereaved are no longer able to hold funeral gatherings for their loved ones.
Today, morticians grow more worried about their exposure to the virus on a daily basis.
Ciano Gatti says, “There is a lot of fear”, speaking from his experience as a mortician in Lombardy, the most affected region in Italy. “We have been introduced a directive to immediately close the coffin when someone dies.”
“We are becoming paranoid,” Gatti continued. “Especially when we enter people’s homes or hospitals to retrieve the bodies.”
Mortuaries are now understaffed at a time when funeral services are in very high demand. This is after many workers have contracted coronavirus even in full protective gear while on the job.
“Many funeral homes have their entire staff under quarantine. My company’s manager died. Unfortunately, no one is immune to the virus. Not even those working these essential jobs,” said Gatti.
The military has intervened as burials overwhelm cities. Local cemeteries at Bergamo, the town with the highest recorded number of COVID-19 cases in Italy, are at full capacity. Coffins have been begun piling up in churches after the fact. 70 coffins have already been transferred to other provinces for burial, Reuters reported.
The Civil Protection Agency in Italy reports that the rate of new cases is now dropping for the fourth day running, following the single-day death toll peak at 793 on March 21.
Source: CBS News
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