Lockdown: FMC Yenagoa Mgt. asks Gov. Diri to lift ban on burials

Thursday, May 14, 2020 8:15 am

…Appeal to Governor Diri to lift suspension of burials to de-congest the morgue

Okafor Ofiebor/ Port Harcourt

The management of Federal Medical Centre, FMC, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, said the hospital’s mortuary is full to capacity and they cannot longer admit new corpses. According to them, the morgue reach it’s full capacity in since last past week.

The management of the hospital attributed the situation to the Executive Order issued by Governor Duoye Diri suspending burials to check the spread of the Coronavirus in the state.

The Consultant Pathologist at the FMC morgue in Yenagoa, Dr Alawode Kehinde, stated this on Tuesday at his office in Yenagoa in while speaking on how the morgue has fared since the order restraining burials in Bayelsa State.

Dr Kehinde said the situation poses a big challenge to the management of the hospital and that if nothing is done urgently to evacuate the corpses from the morgue between now and June, the situation may become very difficult to manage.

He explained that more challenging environmental issues which may arise pose serious health challenges also for those burying because after then, the rains will be heavier which is usually not too okay for burials.

The Consultant Pathologist said in view of that, a letter had in the past week been sent to the Governor of the state, Douye Diri ,to grant those with corpses in the morgue to evacuate them for burial and that hopefully if the request is granted, such burials will be done under strict compliance to social distancing.