New York is currently considered the epicenter of the corona pandemic in the USA.
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More than 7,000 people have already fallen victim to the virus in the metropolis.
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Now some of the corona dead are buried on the New York island of Hart.
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The island could also be used for temporary burials should the deaths exceed the capacity of the city morgues.
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However, this point has not yet been reached.
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Since the coronavirus arrived in the USA, New York has been a hotspot. More than 7,000 people have already fallen victim to the virus in the metropolis. Now some of the corona dead are buried on the New York island of Hart, like CNN reported.
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The island has been used for decades to bury the deceased who have no family members. During the corona crisis, Hart should continue to be used in this way. “It is likely that people who have died of Covid-19 and who fit this description will be buried on the island in the coming days,” says Freddi Goldstein, the press secretary of the New York Mayor.
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Buried two dozen bodies a day
Since the coronavirus spread so quickly in New York, the number of funerals on Hart Island, east of the New York borough of Bronx, has also risen sharply. This reports «The Guardian». Ordinarily, prison inmates who work on the island would have buried 25 bodies a week.
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Now about two dozen bodies are buried on the island – every day! Burials take place five days a week. This is announced by Jason Kersten, spokesman for the law enforcement agency who oversees the funerals. Since the demand is so great, the “Insel-Friedhof” had to rethink: “Two new trenches were dug, just in case we need them.”
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For reasons of social distancing and security reasons, inmates detained in the city will not help with the funerals during the duration of the pandemic.
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Prepared for the worst
The island could also be used for temporary burials should the deaths exceed the capacity of the city morgues. However, this point has not yet been reached. «We all hope it won’t come to that. At the same time, we are prepared for it, should it come to that », says Kersten.
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For burial on the island, the dead are wrapped in body bags and placed in coffins. Excavation machines dig long, narrow trenches, in which the coffins are then buried. The name of the deceased is written on each coffin. That helps if the corpses have to be dug up again later. (dzc)