Almost 300 dead a day
Deadly omicron wave: Hong Kong is running out of coffins – some dead are buried in cardboard
Patients wait outside a crowded Hong Kong hospital
© Alex Chan Tsz Yuk/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire / DPA
Thousands have died from Covid-19 in Hong Kong this month. So many that there were not enough coffins – undertakers sometimes switched to cardboard coffins. The manufacturers even see advantages in this.
Hong Kong is struggling with a major omicron outbreak: the number of infections has skyrocketed in recent weeks – and with them the number of deaths. Most recently, almost 300 Covid 19 deaths were reported a day, and a total of 7,500 people have died from the disease since the pandemic began. A very small number in international comparison, but the vast majority of deaths occurred in this month. At one point, Hong Kong reported the highest Covid-19 death rate in the world based on population
Even if the wave seems to be subsiding, the Chinese special administrative region is in shock: photos on social networks show body bags piling up in hospitals. As the “South China Morning Post” reports, among others, the demand for coffins is so great that the supply can no longer meet it. That is why some undertakers are now burying the dead in cardboard coffins, reports the AP news agency.
Hong Kong: Cardboard coffins bring environmental benefits
This seems to be more of an emergency solution, since the usual wooden coffins are hardly available in this situation. But the cardboard coffins also offer advantages. For one, they are quick and easy to make. According to the AP, LifeArt Asia makes up to 50 coffins a day from recycled wood fibers. Cardboard coffins also make more sense from an ecological point of view: According to the company, they emit 87 percent fewer greenhouse gases than wooden coffins when burned. In Hong Kong, most of the dead are traditionally cremated.
The bereaved have the opportunity to design the outer surface of the coffin individually – for example in relation to the religion and hobbies of the deceased. From an economic as well as an ecological point of view, the manufacturers hope that this type of burial will continue to prevail after the pandemic. But many people are still skeptical. While some see the benefits of the offer, others find such a funeral “not very respectful of their loved ones,” Wilson Tong, executive director of LifeArt Asia, told AP.
In the current situation, however, many survivors have little choice. In Hong Kong, many older people in particular die after corona infections. Only about 20 percent of the over-80s are vaccinated against Covid-19.
Swell: AP / “South China Morning Post” / “Hong Kong Free Press” / “vice”