Crematories in Mexico City have collapsed due to the large number of deaths from COVID-19

Mortuaries report saturation and lagging days in service.

MEXICO (Milenio) – The official figures contrast with the harsh reality of the dead in Mexico. Officials from different funeral homes in Mexico City say the crematoriums in the country’s capital “are saturated” with the dead from covid-19. The cremation of a body awaits its turn more than 24 hours or is sent to the State of Mexico.

“Everything is full; there are no schedules for cremation. In general, all funeral homes have a delay of one, two or even three days, because the schedules are already saturated,” said Javier Rodriguez, director of “Juarez Funeral Home” adjacent to the Hospital Juarez de Mexico. “We need to go use crematories further away: We have to go to Acolman, Cuautitlán Izcalli, Ecatepec and Tultitlán, because here in Mexico city all the ovens, public and private, are saturated.

One of the facilities with the highest demand is located in Palo Alto, Cuajimalpa, whose two ovens operate 24 hours a day, and in this emergency, up to 40 services are provided. In an interview, the coordinator of Panteones in Cuajimalpa, Raúl Peñaloza, accepted that Palo Alto is operating at its maximum capacity. “We are saturated because services are not scheduled. They take out their cremation order and immediately come here”.

A comment was sought from the Legal Department of the CDMX government, but it declined to give a version of the facts. In funeral homes, they maintain that service is slow and, also, the ovens require maintenance and replacement.

MILENIO News visited Palo Alto and observed the operation, as well as the black smoke coming out of the chimneys, which generates discomfort and neighborhood complaints.. In this regard, the workers indicated that the bodies come in black bags, and when they put them in, black smoke comes out for about 10 minutes, but after that, the service is normalized, although they work against the clock.

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