Man declared dead at Covid-hit Shanghai's elderly care centre, found alive in morgue; triggers panic

Two men, in protective clothing, were seen unzipping the bag in front of an employee from the facility and insisting that the person is still alive, the PTI news agency reported quoting a Hong-Kong based South China Morning Post report.

REPRESENTATIONAL IMAGE (CREDITS: REUTERS)

Beijing: A senior citizen was mistaken for dead at an elderly care centre in Shanghai and sent to a morgue where he was found alive, prompting authorities to launch an investigation into the shocking incident that triggered a new wave of anguish in the locked-down city.

Videos circulating widely on Chinese social media showed two men, who appeared to be morgue workers, with a yellow body bag outside the Shanghai Xinchangzheng welfare hospital in Putuo district on Sunday. The men, in protective clothing, were seen unzipping the bag in front of an employee from the facility and insisting that the person is still alive, Hong-Kong-based South China Morning Post reported on Monday.

The staff member then checks for signs of life and reseals the bag, against the protests of bystanders fearing the patient will suffocate.

According to the video, the staff member next returned to the centre to deliberate with two people in white hazmat suits before the elderly patient is seen being wheeled back into the facility.

The incident triggered a new wave of horror for many Shanghai residents, whose grief and anger are at boiling point after harsh citywide lockdowns in place since March 28 show no signs of easing.

The Shanghai local government has come under mounting criticism for its handling of the Omicron outbreak in the city of 26 million people. The city is under lockdown since March 1 triggering angry protests in many parts of the city.

Putuo's Civil Affairs Bureau has confirmed the mix-up and set up an investigation task force, pledging to severely punish those accountable, the Post report quoted state broadcaster CCTV.

The elderly patient has been hospitalised and is in a stable condition, the report said. The care centre, established in 1983 with capacity for more than 100 elderly people, has apologised.

Meanwhile, China recorded 6,074 new Covid-19 cases, including 384 symptomatic and 5,690 asymptomatic infections, the National Health Commission said on Tuesday. The new cases, however, were down from 7,822 a day earlier, of which 865 were symptomatic and 6,957 were asymptomatic.