Health minister claims overcrowding not a result of COVID-19
NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The government will take legal action to remove bodies being stored at Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) morgue if they are not collected by their relatives, said Minister of Health Reward Wells yesterday.
The warning comes as officials continue to make appeals to residents to make arrangements directly or via legal representatives to collect the remains of their dead loved ones as the facility operates beyond capacity.
Speaking to the matter during the morning sitting of Parliament, Wells noted that there are currently 260 bodies at the morgue, whose ordinary capacity is 75 people.
He noted, however, that the “overcrowding is not due to COVID-19 deaths, but rather to individuals waiting for what they deem [a] more appropriate time to bury their loved ones”.
Wells advised that while the Public Hospitals Authority (PHA) has secured refrigerated trailers to increase the capacity of the morgue to 170 persons, that is still insufficient given the spillover.
“I urgently implore our people to bury their loved ones,” he said.
“If the current state of affairs continues, the government will take the legal means it has employed in the past to alleviate this circumstance.”
Last month, the PHA once again began its public appeal in earnest, also calling on funeral homes that are under contract by deceased families to accelerate the removal of bodies in preparation for burial.
Officials have said the increasing number of bodies threaten the operation at the facility as overflow conditions can compromise the integrity of bodies over time.
Last August, several unclaimed bodies from the morgue were buried in mass graves.
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