Travel pass given for burials

NORTHERN end assistant state of emergency (SoE) controller Peter Guinness has issued directives to all police check points within the region to allow the transportation of dead bodies for burial.
This follows concerns by two mortuary keepers at Angau Memorial Hospital over the increase in the number of deaths with limited holding capacity at the mortuary.
Peter Wilson, longest-serving keeper, told The National that since the inception of 14-day Covid-19 lockdown restrictions to inter-district and inter-provincial crossings, this resulted in all three containers being at full to capacity.
“We’ve, so far, received about 80 dead bodies during first one and a half weeks of the Covid-19 lockdown,” he said.
Wilson said the limited holding capacity was due to dead bodies referred back to morgue at check points.
He said the three 20ft containers comprising two deep freezers and a cooler, catered for 36-38 bodies per container.
Guinness, while giving the directives, warned that this shouldn’t be used as an opportunity for anyone or relatives to smuggle any foreign materials like weapons and drugs.
“If police confiscate any foreign items together with dead bodies inside the coffin then SoE Act will be exercised upon those responsible,” he said.
The keepers also raised concerns about not having proper protective safety gears to handle dead bodies died from various illnesses and diseases over last three years.
Wilson said they still had no apt protective safety gear.
Attempts to reach chief executive officer Dr Grant Muddle by email and text message for comments were unsuccessful.