The interim manager of the Spanish Town Funeral Home in St Catherine is blaming the local authorities for the continued health hazard being presented by over 20 decomposed bodies still at the funeral home, which has ceased operation.
Speaking on radio on Thursday, Orin Cole said the property where the funeral home is located, is being sold, and the buyer has locked out the seller through the use of new locks to the premises.
Cole said electricity was disconnected to the facility, but a generator was left in place to power the refrigerators, but since February 17, he has not been able to access the premises to determine the situation therein.
Cole noted an appeal from the St Catherine North police for relatives of the deceased persons to claim the bodies so that they can be properly buried.
However, the interim manager said the bodies had not been claimed from as far back as 2013, and have been declared to be paupers, who should be buried by the state.
He said the owner of the premises is abroad, and he had been appointed through the owner’s attorney, to oversee operations there until the sale is completed.
However, Cole added that while the police are reportedly seeking a solution, he has made numerous failed efforts to secure the assistance of the police, the St Catherine Parish Council and the Ministry of Health, to get the problem resolved.
The St Catherine North police, in a notice to the public earlier this week, said at least 23 bodies at varying stages of decomposition were inside the funeral home. The police said the matter is one of urgent public health concern, as there is no longer electricity connection to the premises because of the sale of the property.
The funeral home is located on busy Young Street in the heart of Spanish Town’s commercial district.
