Hong Kong News

Nonpartisan, Noncommercial, unconstrained.
Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Hong Kong funeral homes decline make-up, viewing services for Covid-19 victims

Hong Kong funeral homes decline make-up, viewing services for Covid-19 victims

Hong Kong Funeral Business Association chairman Ng Yiu-tong says funeral homes are afraid to offer viewing ceremonies to families due to infection fears.

In a double whammy, Tony Chan*, who lost his mother to the coronavirus last month, has decided to call off her funeral ceremony after a facility declined preparatory services such as make-up application and dressing the dead due to infection fears.

Chan, a religious leader in his sixties, said his funeral agent told him that the body had to be placed in a coffin right after it was received from the hospital. As a result, he has called off a ceremony for friends to gather and view the deceased.

His mother’s funeral was originally set to be held at Universal Funeral Home in Hung Hom in the coming week.

“Since the pandemic is getting worse, we will avoid having crowds gathered at the ceremony by skipping it altogether, and head straight to cremation,” Chan said.

A member of staff at the Universal Funeral in Hung Hom told a Post reporter posing as a client that bodies of those who died of Covid-19 must be covered in the coffin when delivered to the funeral home.

Guests at funerals would be barred from viewing the body, he said.

Hong Kong Funeral Business Association chairman Ng Yiu-tong said no funeral homes dared to offer viewing services to families of the deceased, even though ritual and make-up services were allowed under government guidelines.

“Can you tell me who is brave enough to open the bag? It is impossible,” Ng said.

Joseph Woo, a senior funeral planner at Yick Kwan Ho, said he was caught between the concerns of funeral homes and the needs of families who lost loved ones to Covid-19.

“The funeral parlours have their own concerns, but the families are also disappointed that they cannot bid a final farewell to their relatives,” he said. “We, as funeral planners, feel helpless because there is nothing we can do.”

Hong Kong Funeral Business Association chairman Ng Yiu-tong.


The city confirmed a record 56,827 Covid-19 infections on Thursday, pushing the overall tally to 350,557, while 144 Covid-19 patients died in the past 24 hours. The death toll stood at 1,366, including 42 earlier unreported fatalities.

Leung Pak-wai, manager of Kowloon Funeral Parlour in Tai Kok Tsui, accused the government of ignoring health risks for funeral home staff by permitting viewings and make-up services.

According to latest official guidelines on preparing the bodies of Covid-19 patients, the corpse must first be placed in a robust and leakproof transparent plastic bag in the mortuary. When the body is transferred to the parlour, embalming is not permitted but viewings at the funeral and preparation, including mortuary make-up, are allowed. Cremation is also recommended.

Staff are required to wear disposable gloves, water-resistant gowns and surgical masks while handling the bodies.

“How come body bags are allowed to be opened in funeral homes [under the guidelines] when the practice is banned in mortuaries? Are the workers in mortuaries more prestigious than our staffers? Why does the government shift the responsibility to us?” he lamented.

The Centre for Health Protection held a talk with the sector to exchange views on funeral matters and precautionary measures for handling dead bodies.

However, Leung said problems remained after the meeting as the industry was still caught up in the dilemma of whether to allow viewings and make-up services, as the guideline required.

“They only told us to stick to the guideline, and taught us how to wear protective gear properly,” he said. “They never gave us an answer to solve our query.”

Meanwhile, to ease waiting times for cremation, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department said five crematoriums had already extended sessions.

He also called on the funeral business and families of the deceased to take care of after-death arrangements as soon as possible to alleviate pressure on mortuaries.

Woo said an additional 40 to 50 per cent of slots were provided each day following the new arrangement.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Hong Kong News
0:00
0:00
Close
It's always the people with the dirty hands pointing their fingers
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Steve Jobs' Son Launches Venture Capital Firm With $200 Million For Cancer Treatments
Google reshuffles Assistant unit, lays off some staffers, to 'supercharge' products with A.I.
End of Viagra? FDA approved a gel against erectile dysfunction
UK sanctions Russians judges over dual British national Kara-Murza's trial
US restricts visa-free travel for Hungarian passport holders because of security concerns
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Political leader from South Africa, Julius Malema, led violent racist chants at a massive rally on Saturday
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
'I am not your servant': IndiGo crew member, passenger get into row over airline meal
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Spanish Citizenship Granted to Iranian chess player who removed hijab
US Senate Republican Mitch McConnell freezes up, leaves press conference
Speaker McCarthy says the United States House of Representatives is getting ready to impeach Joe Biden.
San Francisco car crash
This camera man is a genius
3D ad in front of Burj Khalifa
Next level gaming
BMW driver…
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
×