Colombian company makes coffin beds during pandemic

On Friday, ABC Displays, a Colombian design company, announced plans to make and donate biodegradable, disposable cardboard hospital beds that, when necessary, convert into coffins.

Hospital beds for COVID-19 patients, as well as coffins to bury those who die from it, are in short supply in the Colombian state of Amazonas which is currently experiencing a spike in cases of the virus with many people succumbing to it in ever rising numbers.

The cardboard beds are able to hold up to 150 kilos (330 lbs).

Employees at the cardboard factory showed how easily the biodegradable, cardboard bed can accommodate a sick person and how, if the patient should die, the body is then placed in the box portion of the bed and covered with a lid to be carried away and buried.

The coronavirus is only able to survive in cardboard for 24 hours, making it an optimum alternative material during the pandemic.

Coronavirus virus survives in plastic and metal for up to 3 days.

Directors for ABC Displays say they are able to manufacture 3,000 of the coffin beds a month and are calling on other Colombian businesses to pledge donations for the manufacture of additional beds as needed.

Colombia has 9,456 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 407 deaths, according to John Hopkins University.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.