Amid the surge in the number of coronavirus cases in Chhattisgarh’s Durg district, the bodies of victims have been piling up in a local morgue, with at least 38 losing their lives in the past seven days. Durg is one of the hardest-hit districts in the state that has faced a massive increase in Covid-19 infections as a second wave threatens to break out.
Chhattisgarh reported 4,174 new Covid-19 cases on Friday, April 2, of which Durg accounted for 964 of the new infections, bringing the district’s number of cases to 41,032, including 766 deaths. More than 6,000 people have been infected in the district in the last seven days, rendering the authorities unable to cope with the increase in the number of infections and deaths.
Amid a spike in cases in Durg, the district administration imposed a complete lockdown from April 6 to April 14.
Doctors at a 500-bed government hospital cannot deliver the bodies of the victims to their families, as the district morgue that has eight freezers already has 27 bodies stacked, NDTV reported.
“So far no alternative arrangements have been made (to deal with the Covid crisis). We have been informed that bodies are piling up in the morgue … we are investigating this. ”NDTV quoted Durg’s chief medical superintendent, Dr. PR Balkishor, as saying.
About four to five people die every day from Covid-19 and, in most cases, patients are admitted in critical condition, that is, when their oxygen levels have dropped to 40 or 50 percent, he said. , adding that a shortage of medication staff could pose a problem for people suffering from other ailments. “We are trying to withdraw non-Covid services,” he said.
In reaction to the increase in the number of deaths from Covid-19, Durg Sarveshwar collector Narendra Bhure said that district authorities were trying to create more places for cremations as cemeteries have run out of space. “Before, cremation took place in two places. With the increase in deaths in the past two days, many bodies have been taken to cremation centers. We are trying to organize 2-3 places for it, ”he said.
The situation has been dire in the district and a one-week shutdown may not be enough to cope with the increase in cases. In the past fortnight, Chhattisgarh’s number of active cases increased by a record 369 percent, from 6,753 on March 20 to 28,987 on April 2.
On Friday, the Center listed the state as one of 11 marked “serious concern.” Earlier, a core team of medical experts was also dispatched to the state to help fight the virus.
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