Mayor wants burial ban lifted

Chairman of the St Catherine Municipal Corporation Norman Scott has called on the government to reconsider its ban on burials.

"Funeral directors are highlighting the fact that there are 10 weeks in backlog of bodies in the parlours. With an additional two weeks ban of burials, can you imagine that another virus might very well result from the undue storage?" Scott said.

Scott suggested that while funerals are more of a fashion display sometimes, a burial is different.

"The burials should be allowed as it can be better controlled and monitored. The government should allow burials from Monday to Friday, as during those days, more persons are at work. The government can seek assistance from the military to help with reinforcing the COVID-19 protocols," Scott said.

Scott, who was addressing Thursday's monthly general meeting of the municipal corporation, emphasised the need to change the materials from which coffins are made.

"We are of the view that the Public Cemetery Act 2015 speaks to the safety standard of the wooden coffin against the fancy-glass types. We are aware that the bodies of cancer, AIDS and COVID-19 victims deteriorate faster. Therefore, we need to strictly enforce the use of wooden coffins which are stronger," Scott said.

He told the meeting that the St Catherine Health Department is aware of these findings, therefore, work must be done to address the issues at hand. Meanwhile, Grayson Hutchinson, St Catherine's chief public health inspector, said the act only speaks of wood.