Authorities in the Brazilian city of Manaus have begun burying people who died from Covid-19 in mass graves after the number of people falling victim to the virus dramatically increased.
In a somber statement, Manaus City Hall said that the number of burials in public cemeteries spiraled significantly over the past few days and it has been forced to use mass graves to cope with all the fatalities. The average number of burials before the disease hit the city was approximately 30 per day. However, the daily figure has now climbed close to 100.
“The municipality has adopted the mass graves system to bury the victims of Covid-19, a method already used in other countries,” the statement reads, adding that it is “a necessary measure to attend to the demand for burials.”
Grim video footage from the scene of the burials shows earth-moving machines carving out a large trench for coffins and covering the varnished boxes in mounds of clay.
Manaus, which has a population of around two million, has recorded one of the highest rates of the coronavirus disease across Brazil. Figures released by officials on Tuesday reveal that Covid-19 has officially claimed 163 lives in the city, however some lawmakers have expressed fears that the true death toll may be higher.
On Monday, refrigerated containers were installed in one of the city’s cemeteries to cope with the influx of bodies being sent from hospitals, while last week video published by local media showed a hospital where bodies were being stored in plastic bags next to patients.
In response to the crisis in the city, the Brazilian government has sent doctors and medical supplies and is building a field hospital to help treat indigenous people.
Brazil’s official Covid-19 fatality count currently stands at nearly 2,800 and over 43,000 people have contracted the illness. It has the highest rate of victims and cases in Latin America.
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