At least 300 people die every day due to COVID-19, cemeteries warn that they are running out of space and corpses are piling up because there are too many burials to be done every day.
A corpse in the break room. Embalmed bodies in the garage. Boyd Funeral Home, a small family funeral home in Los Angeles, is so saturated with COVID-19 victims that it has begun rejecting customers for the first time in its history.
“The previous weekend I turned down 16 families for whom I couldn’t provide services,” says owner Candy Boyd. “It’s sad. But that’s the way it is now.”
In the last two weeks the coronavirus has plagued the city of Los Angeles and about 80% of the dead who walked through the gates died from viruses.
One in 10 residents of the country’s second largest city has been infected since the pandemic began, and nearly 300 people died daily last week as infections spread.
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At Boyd’s reception, the phones keep ringing, but those who say don’t get an answer. Overwhelmed staff now tells customers to just show up and line up.
He’s even getting calls from desperate families from other counties, plus an hour’s drive.
Many hospital mortuary depots are also full, with local forensics using refrigerated trucks to accommodate victims. Some cemeteries warn of two-week waiting lists.
Owner Candy Boyd says she has even had to dump families because she has no space to store the corpses. photo AFP
“Things are getting more and more out of control,” Boyd says.
During AFP’s visit this week, a coffin with a small wreath occupied the employees ’rest room. He had been there a week.
“This room is our dining area, however, we have to use this room as space for coffins,” the owner explains. “We’ve done the services, but the cemetery is so busy we have to keep them here until they have time to do the burial.”
Bodies in the garage
Like much of southern Los Angeles, the Westmont neighborhood is primarily inhabited by black and Latino working-class communities, who reside in densely populated homes.
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These areas have been particularly affected by the pandemic, with mortality rates two to three times higher than those in nearby communities.
The cold room at Boyd’s funeral home has been constantly full.
Two weeks ago, Boyd brought carpenters to build two large wooden structures in the company’s garage to store embalmed bodies.
“He didn’t even have a chance to really finish because we needed to (store) these,” he says, pointing to the corpses wrapped in bags lying on the shelves.
“I never would have imagined having to build this, not even in my craziest dreams.”
Some funeral homes have reported a shortage of coffins due to lack of wood, although Boyd’s supplier keeps up to date with orders as long as they are placed well in advance.
“Nightmares”
Concerned that her five workers were infected with the virus at the start of the pandemic, Boyd initially refused to accept the victims of COVID. “I had nightmares. I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t sleep,” he recalls.
Since then, Boyd has created security protocols and now feels comfortable dealing with the influx, though he insists “it’s not a money issue.”
Many hospital mortuary depots are also full, with local forensics using refrigerated trucks to accommodate victims. Some cemeteries warn of two-week waiting lists. photo AFP
“It’s about helping families,” he says.
“I get billed every day, I’m struggling with that,” Boyd adds. “And I have to keep an impassive face because I have to be here for the family.”
Sometimes customers are people you have known personally for a long time.
Other times, Boyd encounters families who still refuse to wear masks or respect physical distance, even when they do the paperwork to bury their loved ones.
“The numbers don’t lie. It’s true. It’s real,” Boyd says of the illness.
Cases in California have more than doubled since early December to 2.8 million.
“If you don’t take it seriously,” warns an AFP reporter, “you could be one of the people in my last row.”