MEISSEN, Germany (AP) – Coffins are stacked at three heights in the dimly lit memorial room of the Meissen crematorium, piled up in empty offices and stored in hallways. Many are sealed with plastic wrap, others are labeled as “risk of infection”, “urgent” or simply “COVID”.
An increase in coronavirus deaths in this corner of eastern Germany has boosted business for crematorium manager Joerg Schaldach and his staff, but no one is celebrating.
“The situation is a bit tense for us right now,” Schaldach said as another undertaker’s van pulled out.
Normally, the crematorium would have between 70 and 100 caskets in place at this time of year, when the flu season begins to cover the elderly.
“It’s normal for more people to die in the winter than in the summer,” Schaldach said. “It’s always been that way.”
It now has 300 bodies waiting to be cremated and dozens more are being delivered every day to the modernist building on a hill overlooking Meissen, an old town best known for its delicate porcelain and stunning Gothic castle.
On Monday, Meissen County again took the unwanted lead in Germany’s COVID-19 tables, with an infection rate three times higher than the national average. The state of Saxony, where Meissen is located, includes six of the ten most affected counties in Germany.
Schaldach says the crematorium does its best to keep up with demand, firing twin kilns every 45 minutes and managing 60 cremations a day.
“The ashes still end up in the right urn,” he said.
But while staff would normally make sure the deceased looked good for relatives to say goodbye for good, the infection rules now mean that the coffers of COVID victims must remain closed throughout the process, which which makes the whole process even more difficult for those involved.
“It’s our thing, we’ve seen death many, many times,” Schaldach said. “The problem we see is that relatives in distress need our help. And, for the time being, there is a greater need for words of consolation, as they have given their deceased loved one to the ambulance and then they will never see them again ”.
Some have linked Saxony’s high infection rate to broader anti-government sentiment in a state where more than a quarter voted the far-right Alternative for Germany party in the last national election. Its lawmakers have opposed the need to wear masks, people’s meeting limits and store closures. Some have even denied the existence of a direct pandemic.
Other commentators have pointed to the large number of elderly people in the state and their dependence on nursing home workers in the neighboring Czech Republic, where COVID-19 infections are even higher.
Meissen officials, including the head of the county administration, the association of local doctors and the legislator representing the region in parliament, an ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, declined to be interviewed about the situation.
Saxony Governor Michael Kretschmer acknowledged in a recent interview with the newspaper Freie Presse that he had underestimated the impact of the pandemic on his state and paid too much attention to those calling for the opening of businesses and schools.
A video showing Kretschmer talking to anti-blockade protesters outside his home on Sunday ends with him marching after a person puts on a mask made to look like the German imperial war flag, a symbol favored by far-right extremists.
Schaldach, the crematorium manager, says most people in Saxony accept the rules. But he has also read comments on reports from social media brands about bodies piling up in his crematorium as fake news.
“Those who believe in conspiracy theories cannot be helped. We don’t want to debate with them, “he told The Associated Press.” They have their beliefs and we have our knowledge. “
In Meissen, the streets are empty, devoid of regular tourists or even the hustle and bustle of the locals.
Franziska Schlieter runs a gourmet food store in the historic city center that is one of the few people that can remain open in the middle of closing. His store, run by five generations of his family, is being run by a string of regular customers who buy lottery cards and gift baskets.
“In the Bible, God sent plagues on people when they were not behaving,” said Schlieter, who believes it was a mistake to relax the blockade during Christmas. “Sometimes I have to think about it.”
In the cobbled square, Matthias Huth serves a lone food truck outside his closed restaurant. He defends those who have questioned the COVID-19 government restrictions, but says skepticism should not justify denial.
“Conversations are starting to change,” Huth said as she served a plate of chopped sausage, sauerkraut, and puree known locally as “the dead grandmother”. “Everyone wants it over.”
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Kerstin Sopke contributed to this report.
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