Coronavirus: Trust looks to open new mortuary early to cope with Covid-19

A source told the News Letter that there were construction workers at the scene working to get the facility open quickly.

A spokeswoman for the South Eastern Trust confirmed it was looking at opening a new mortuary earlier than planned.

“We are currently nearing completion of the building of a new Acute Services Block on the Ulster Hospital site, which includes a new mortuary,” she said.

“We are looking at the possibility of opening this part of the building earlier than anticipated, should we need additional capacity in the current emergency.”

She said the block had been planned for some time before the pandemic and they were only considering opening the mortuary section early in light of possible emergency demands. The new build will provide 15 additional mortuary spaces making a total of 27 on the Ulster site.

The news comes after it was confirmed that councils across Northern Ireland have been retraining employees for redeployment to ensure critical services are maintained during the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

With a surge in the number of Covid-19 related fatalities expected, many local authorities have already begun bolstering the strength of their bereavement services’ teams.

Belfast City Council has said some workers have already been redeployed to “critical frontline services”.

A spokeswoman said: “We have provided training for staff and redeployed some workers to critical frontline services, including our bereavement services team. Staff are involved in ensuring continued service in relation to burials and cremations and associated business.”

At Mid and East Antrim Council, chief executive Anne Donaghy said council staff have “gone above and beyond to ensure frontline services are protected ... our staff have been exceptional in offering themselves to assist across council roles.”

Armagh City Banbridge and Craigavon, Mid Ulster, and Lisburn and Castlereagh Council all also confirmed that staff are similarly being invited to redeploy.