Mass graves dug in Manaus amid pandemic

Authorities in Manaus began digging mass graves on Tuesday to bury the increasing number of victims of Covid-19 in the city.

According to a City Hall statement, the number of burials has more than doubled in the Nossa Senhora Aparecida public cemetery over the past few days.

The average before the pandemic was some 30 burials per day, but the daily figure is now closer to 100.

"The municipality has adopted the mass graves system to bury the victims of Covid-19, a method already used in other countries," the city's statement reads, adding that it is "a necessary measure to attend to the demand for burials."

With some 2 million inhabitants, the capital of Amazonas state has registered one of the highest rates of deaths and confirmed cases in the country.

Manaus is also the only city in the state with intensive care units, most of which are already busy.

Last week a video published by local media and posted online, showed bodies in plastic bags next to patients inside the hospital Joao Lucio where in 36 hours, 19 people died of Covid-19. Some of the bodies were removed and put in cold containers that remain parked outside the hospital.

The federal government sent doctors, medical equipment and is building a field hospital to treat indigenous people.

Two indigenous people with Covid-19 already died in the state, authorities reported.

The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death.

More than 2,700 people have died in Brazil infected with Covid-19, with at least 43-thousand cases confirmed by Tuesday.  Brazil is the country with the highest rate of victims and confirmed cases in Latin-America.