COVID-19: NYC morgue workers carry 80 bodies in bedsheets as body bags ran out

As the coronavirus outbreak continues to tighten its grip around the world and has killed over 160k people, a morgue worker in New York City has made shocking revelations about how they have to carry 80 corpses to a trailer in bedsheets when they ran out of body bags. While talking to a media outlet, Erik Frampton, a temporary worker at refrigerator morgue, talked about the shortage of supplies amid the pandemic and bodies were left unmarked. Sometimes, the 46-year-old said that they were forced to open body bags to find ankle or wrist bracelets. 

Frampton said, “we use hospital bed sheets where bags have failed” and the floor is leaked with matters that are released from the corpses. Moreover, “almost all of the remains” are sent to them with still having tubes in them including ventilator connections. The index fingers of the dead bodies of such people read “Covidean”. In an online column, Frampton even wrote that if he could describe the “utter chaos” of removing 50 to 80 bodies in a haphazard manner to manoeuvre the shelving over them, he would. He added, “but words escape me”. 

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In the world’s fight against coronavirus outbreak, the frontline workers including the ones at morgues, medical practitioners, and other essential service providers have emerged as “heroes”. When most part of the world is under lockdown and are practicing social distancing, such workers are facing the challenges of thousands dying due to COVID-19 disease. Frampton even confessed that he had taken the job at morgue retailer without knowing the emotional turmoil it would cause in him. 

Frampton later revealed on Facebook on April 18, that since his shocking confessions, he has been fired for the safety of his colleagues. He said, “eyes are many, but voices are few” in the trailers that carry the bodies of people who died of coronavirus infections. In a long Facebook post, where Frampton publically explained everything about his job, he concluded by saying, “There is beauty in decay if you are strong enough and willing to see it.”

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Global death toll of coronavirus outbreak

After originating from China’s “wet markets”, the coronavirus has now claimed 160,820 lives worldwide as of April 19. According to the tally by international news agency, the pandemic has now spread to 210 countries and has infected at least 2,333,941 people. Out of the total infections, 600,411 have been recovered but the easily spread virus is continuing to disrupt many lives. Major cities have been put under lockdown in almost all countries and the economy is struggling. 

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Image Source: AP/Representative