Kolkata, July 2: A family in Kolkata was forced to purchase an ice-cream freezer to preserve the body of a 71-year-old man who died of coronavirus (COVID-19) at home on Monday. The local administration arrived to collect the body for cremation on Wednesday, a full 48 hours after the death. Several morgues turned the family away as they did not have COVID-19 report of the deceased for two days. CISF Assistant Sub-Inspector Succumbs to Coronavirus in Kolkata, Was Posted at Indian Museum.

According to reports, the elderly man, who used to live on the top floor of an apartment on Amherst Street with his wife, was suffering from fever and cough for the past few days. On Monday, he developed breathing issues and was taken to a nearby private hospital by his son. The hospital suggested a COVID-19 test. The test was conducted at a local diagnostic centre. When he was brought back home, his condition deteriorated and he died around 3 pm at home and the family's worst nightmare began. Hackers Breach Online Class in Kolkata, Threaten Girl Students With Rape And Murder.

The family, which runs a chemical business, first called a physician who refused to issue a death certificate citing pendency of COVID-19 report. "The doctor said my uncle possibly died of a cardiac arrest but couldn’t write that in the death certificate unless the COVID test report comes. He asked us to preserve the body until we got the report," the victim’s nephew was quoted by Times of India as saying.

The family visited multiple morgues in Kolkata but no one was ready to keep the body. They said they also called the police but none arrived. In the meantime, the body had started to decompose. "So, the next morning, we bought an ice-cream freezer and kept the body inside it to prevent it from rotting. We had no other option,” said the nephew. Late on Tuesday, they recieved a report from the diagnostic centre which confirmed that the deceased was COVID-19 positive.

"After the report came, we again informed the local police station and health department officials, who said help would be available soon. But they only came on Wednesday afternoon, that too after multiple calls," another relative was quoted as saying. The authorities arrived on Wednesday and the body was taken away at 2 pm, 48 hours after the man's death. The building in which the man lived was sanitised 50 hours after he died.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 02, 2020 10:37 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).