Overflowing corpses lead to '5-minute funerals'... "3 deaths per day" in China

COVID-19 Infection Surge, Crematorium Burden
Funeral Waiting Lines Cause Continuous Disruptions
"No Time to Die"... Citizens' Anger

The COVID-19 infection situation in China is becoming increasingly severe. Crematoriums have reached saturation, and bodies are reportedly piling up in various places.

The U.S. financial media outlet Bloomberg reported on the 3rd (local time), citing local funeral home officials, that crematoriums in China have reached an overcapacity state.

Exterior view of a crematorium in Beijing, China, photographed on December 31 last year

For example, the Longhua Crematorium in Shanghai has received over 500 bodies, about five times its usual processing capacity. Although not all bodies sent to the crematorium are COVID-19 related deaths, the surge in infections has reportedly increased the number of deaths, putting a strain on the facilities.

An employee at a crematorium told Bloomberg, "The crematorium is busier than anyone can handle. Bodies are overflowing everywhere."

Even if cremation is successful, holding a proper funeral is an entirely different matter. As crematoriums are busy, funeral halls are also experiencing long waiting lines.

According to Bloomberg, the time spent per funeral is only 5 to 10 minutes, and due to limited space, many funerals cannot be conducted properly.

Public dissatisfaction is also growing. On Weibo, China's largest social networking service (SNS), many netizens have posted messages expressing anger over the recent situation.

One netizen remarked, "We do not have the luxury to live under a full lockdown, and now we do not even have the luxury to die."

Although the situation at crematoriums is serious, no one in China knows the exact number of COVID-19 deaths. Chinese health authorities announced that as of the 2nd, the daily COVID-19 death toll in China was three.

In contrast, Airfinity, a health research company based in London, UK, estimates that the current daily average death toll in China is around 9,000 and predicts it could rise to 25,000 per day by the end of this month. Airfinity is particularly concerned that the mass population movement during the Chinese New Year period (January 22) will further spread infections.