mortuary

“It’s important to reach out to families and get a reference sample, to exclude the possibility that their relative might be in a mortuary,” says Mr Holliday.

Harassment and threats come from patients, their friends and families too, she says, describing how members of the public attacked her team while they were handling bodies in the mortuary last year.

Mrs Cope referenced the hospital recently partially losing its mortuary accreditation, after assessors raised concerns about security following two mix-ups of bodies given to bereaved families.

All seven of the dead have been transported to a mortuary for post-mortems.

However, by late last year the MoH was unable to function effectively with overflowing mortuaries, fighting in and around hospitals and poor internet and phone connectivity.