Dog gnaws at body of COVID victim in Hindon

Adding to the misery of a family of a 51-year-old man — who died due to COVID-19 — his body kept in a queue at the Hindon crematorium was gnawed at by a stray dog.

The man, who was employed as an orderly in the district judge’s court of Ghaziabad, had tested positive on Thursday. After he developed breathing problems, he was admitted to the civil hospital.

Triloki Singh, a colleague, said the patient was under treatment but his condition deteriorated, and he was referred to Santosh Medical College on Saturday. He showed signs of improvement and his oxygen level reached 80 from 40.

But within a few hours, his oxygen level again fell to 30. At 1 a.m. on Sunday, he suffered a cardiac arrest and doctors declared him dead. The hospital handed over the body to the family. The body was wrapped in a PPE kit as per COVID protocols.

“We were trying for an ambulance since 1.30 a.m. and finally managed to arrange one. We then reached the Hindon cremation ground at 8 a.m. At the site, we were told that token will be given at 10 a.m. because they already have bodies in the queue,” said Mr. Singh. The family said they kept the body in a queue and went to stand under a shade nearby as they were told that their turn would come by 6 p.m.

“Around 2 p.m., a passer-by informed that a dog was gnawing at a body kept in the queue. Many at the spot rushed to see what had happened. We found that a dog had torn through the PPE kit of the body and had eaten a part of the face. We immediately raised the matter with the district administration staff at Hindon. We managed to cremate the body at 3.30 p.m,” said a relative.

After the incident, many staged a protest at Hindon. Later, a senior official said they would fence the area to prevent the entry of stray animals.