The Pasay City Public Cemetery and Crematorium said recently that the number of cremations they are performing has doubled since the second week of March this year.
The crematorium said their usual daily count of eight to ten bodies processed has increased to 15 to 16, 60% of which were infected by Covid-19.
“Ang iba po kasi, mas pinipili ng family na ipa-cremate, kasi mas convenient po sa kanila, dahil ‘yung iba po mas gusto na iuwi na lang ang urn sa bahay or dalhin sa columbarium [Some family members choose to have the body cremated because it is more convenient for them and they want to just take the urn home or bring it to a columbarium],” Pasay Public Cemetery and Crematorium Officer-in-Charge Laura Leonen said.
Aside from Pasay City residents, residents of areas outside Pasay also head to the city to avail of their more affordable cremation service which is priced at around ₱8,000.
The crematorium has appealed to the local government for assistance in buying new machines as their current tools are at risk of getting overloaded due to the increase in the number of bodies they process.
Leonen said they have already ordered the needed machines which will replace the old ones this month.
Although there are Covid-19 related deaths in the city, the recovery rate of the disease is at 91.36 percent.
The Department of Health (DOH) earlier reported that the COVID-19 case fatality rate in the country is on a downward trend despite a rise in the number of cases.
Everyone is reminded to always practice minimum public health standards to prevent the further transmission of the disease. — Report from Louisa Erispe/AG-jlo
