Coronavirus: 18 bodies found in ‘makeshift morgue’ at US nursing home
- Facility overwhelmed by large number of deaths over the weekend
- There have been 68 fatalities linked to the home, with at least 26 of them Covid-19 related
An extraordinary number of coronavirus-related deaths appears to have overwhelmed a nursing home in northern New Jersey where police found 18 bodies in what the governor called a “makeshift morgue” on two consecutive days earlier this week.
Police got an anonymous tip on Monday that a body was being stored outside the home, Andover Township Police Chief Eric Danielson said Thursday.
When police arrived, he said, the body was not where the tipster had said it was – but they found 13 bodies inside. They were removed on Monday night and taken to a hospital in a refrigerated truck.
The New Jersey Herald first reported the finding of the bodies, which followed the discovery of five bodies at the home on Sunday after complaints from staff and family members to law enforcement.
The remains found at the facility are among 68 deaths linked to the home, including residents and two nurses, The New York Times reported, citing Danielson, other officials and county records shared with a federal official. At least 26 of those deaths were confirmed by laboratory tests to be related to Covid-19, the newspaper said.