Some Corpses In China Decompose For Days Before Cremation As COVID-19 Deaths Surge

Crematoriums across China are reportedly experiencing congestion as the country sees a surge in COVID-19 cases, resulting in some bodies being left to decompose at home while they wait to be picked up.

Among those affected is the Longhua Funeral Home in the city of Shanghai, which received more than 500 corpses in a single day over the weekend, Bloomberg reported.

The number is supposedly around five times more than what the business typically handles.

Families are allegedly given between five to 10 minutes to mourn in a room containing bodies zipped up in yellow bags.

One mourner had to wait their turn to say goodbye along with around 300 other people.

"We're lucky it's the cold winter time," the mourner, a relative of an octogenarian woman whose corpse was left decomposing for five days at home before it was taken away, remarked.

Similar scenes are reportedly playing out at other funeral homes across China, which is currently going through a coronavirus outbreak.

Up to 248 million people in China, representing nearly a fifth of its population of 1.4 billion, may have contracted COVID-19 within the first 20 days of December, Bloomberg previously reported.

In comparison, only around 10.3 million coronavirus cases have been officially recorded in the country so far, according to data provided by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Despite the ongoing surge, the rate of deaths in China has been normal, according to Jiao Yahui, the deputy head of the Medical Policy and Administration Bureau under the country's National Health Commission.

"Relative to the rest of the world, the infection peaks we are faced with across the country are not unusual," she said, according to a report by The Times.

"We have a huge base, so what people feel is that the severe cases, the critical cases or the fatalities are increasing," the health official explained.

Chinese President Xi Jinping's administration acknowledged only about a dozen deaths since it eased pandemic restrictions early last month.

However, British health data firm Airfinity claimed Thursday it is likely that around 9,000 people in China are dying each day from COVID-19.

The company estimated that the figure could go all the way up to 25,000 by Jan. 23, Reuters reported.

China has a total of 31,914 recorded coronavirus-related deaths, WHO data showed.