In Iraq bodies lay in the sun as morgues overflow with Covid-19 casualties

Hospitals and morgues in Iraq are “overwhelmed” according to reports from Baghdad with the chance of contracting the virus remaining “extremely high,” Per Second News gathered.

“The mortuary is full, we are waiting for a car to pick them up,” said a weeping man.

Under the scorching heat of Iraq’s summer sun, at least four bodies of Covid-19 victims lay under sheets outside a Baghdad hospital morgue.

“They are here from yesterday under the sun,” says a man in a video shared widely on social media.

One online video shows people scuffling over oxygen tanks outside a hospital.

The Director of Al Kindi Hospital, Dr Salim Al Bahadli, defended his hospital’s decision to keep the dead outside the morgue, saying there were concerns over keeping infected bodies with those who died from other causes as it could pose a threat to families collecting their deceased.

“We are in a crisis that forces us sometimes to make decisions that evoke feelings and strong opinions and this has been the case in other countries in the world,” Dr Al Bahdli told The National in a phone interview, saying his staff and hospital are under huge pressure since the outbreak.