The overworked furnaces at Sumanahalli electric crematorium, which have been taking a significant load of COVID-19 bodies, have broken down. The facility will be shut up to May 10.
These are not the first furnaces to break down. In the last two weeks, furnaces at the crematoriums on Mysuru Road and at Kudlu also broke down, unable to take the load of bodies. The Hindu had reported on the issue on May 1.
“A furnace in an electric crematorium can burn a maximum of five bodies a day. But in the last month, these furnaces have worked relentlessly without a break burning bodies several times their capacity. Their breakdown was expected, and it is imminent in other crematoria as well,” said a senior official overseeing electric crematoria in the city.
Both furnaces at Sumanahalli electric crematorium have to be changed.
This will severely impact cremation of COVID-19 bodies in the city, probably creating a glut of bodies at other crematoria that are already overworked. A senior civic official said open cremation using firewood was the only way out.
“We have started open crematoria in Giddenahalli, Tavarekere, Mettipalya, T.R. Mills, while another is coming up in Mavallipura. Mass cremations are being held at these locations, which will absorb the workload of Sumanahalli crematorium,” the official said adding given that the city is expected to record less number of cases over the next 10 days, they hope that the death toll will also come down.
