Photos show bodies piled up and stored in vacant rooms at Detroit hospital

[Dennis Donovan]

https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/13/health/detroit-hospital-bodies-coronavirus-trnd/index.html


Body bags and blue bags containing the personal effects of the deceased are seen piled inside a portable refrigerator storage unit outside the hospital.

By Ryan Young, Jake Carpenter and Paul P. Murphy, CNN

Updated 4:45 AM ET, Tue April 14, 2020

(CNN) Photos shared among emergency room staff at Sinai-Grace Hospital in Detroit show bodies being stored in vacant hospital rooms and piled on top of each other inside refrigerated holding units brought into the hospital's parking lot.

CNN acquired the photos from an emergency room worker.
Two other emergency room workers confirm the photos are an accurate portrayal of the scene taking place at the hospital during early April, during one 12-hour shift they describe as overwhelming.

<snip>

The two sources tell CNN that at least one room, which is typically used for studies on sleeping habits, was used to store bodies because morgue staff did not work at night, and the morgue was full.

"All I know is we ran out of beds to keep our patients on so we couldn't spare any for the bodies," said one ER worker, who witnessed the bodies in the room.

In the photo two bodies were put on a bed, side by side, and another body is placed in a chair next to the bed. All three bodies are in white body bags.

</snip>

[jimfields33]

1. Morgue staff doesn't work at night?

[Pacifist Patriot]

3. Not typically

You'll have a couple of people who make death calls 24x7 (and usually on call not sitting at the morgue), but the bulk of activity in a morgue is pretty much M-F 8-5.

Depending on the location of the morgue (urban, suburban, rural, hospital, independent facility, etc.) there usually isn't much of a need to staff it all the time, just have someone on call for the occasional after hours death. Most deaths are actually discovered during daylight hours anyway.

Morgues in hospitals don't really need night staff because it's on site and someone who dies during the night can be transferred to the morgue easily enough and processed when morgue staff arrive for work the next day.

Yep, it's a daytime job for the most part.

And not nearly as neat and tidy a system as tv shows would have us believe. I think John Oliver did a piece of coroners and medical examiners that would blow your socks off.

[OneBro]

2. Each person . . .

. . . an uncle or aunt, brother, sister, nana or grandpa. A son, a daughter, a favorite cousin, a best friend. A teacher, a nurse, . . .

“I don’t take responsibility at all.”
Donald Trump
President of the United States.

Yes, elections do truly have consequences.

[Pacifist Patriot]

4. That was my first thought.

The relationships these people represent.

[demmiblue]

5. Heartbreaking.

[UpInArms]

6. ...