Guwahati: A 71-year-old COVID-19 patient in Kolkata passed away last Monday, but his family were forced to keep his corpse in a freezer for 48 hours as authorities did not turn up at the residence to help cremate him.
Health Department sources informed that the Kolkata man who had breathing problems passed away at his residence in the Raja Rammohan Roy Sarani in the central part of the city. He had reportedly visited his doctor on Monday, who advised him to undergo a COVID-19 test, which he died. However, he died later that same afternoon after returning home.
The doctor visited the man's apartment wearing a PPE, but refused to issue a death certificate and instead urged the family to report to the nearby Amherst Street police station under whose jurisdiction the area falls. The family did not receive any assistance from the police, who urged them to get in touch with the state's health department authorities. However, nobody picked up when they dialled a helpline number.
The family, in a state of helplessness, contacted local mortuaries, who also refused to help them because of the circumstances leading up to the death. The deceased man's family then procured a freezer which they used to store the dead body till the last rites could be performed.
They later told the media that they did this because no one helped them and their calls were not answered, and that is why they decided to keep the dead body at home inside a freezer.
Test results came in on Tuesday night and confirmed that the man was infected with the COVID-19. However, even after they received the result, they did were not successful in getting in touch with the local authorities.
On Wednesday morning, they finally got calls from the health department and told them everything. Within an hour, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) employees reached the apartment and took away the body for cremation, a family member said.
The officials have said that the body of the 71-year-old Kolkata man will be cremated as per the ICMR guidelines for Covid-19 deaths.