Bodies of nCoV fatality, PUI already ‘disposed’, says DOH

The San Lazaro Hospital has "disposed" of the bodies of the 44-year-old Chinese man who died after testing positive for novel coronavirus infection and another patient who had been investigated for nCoV infection, health officials said on Friday.

"The two bodies have been disposed properly already. Wala na sila dito sa San Lazaro and of course all following safety procedures," Health Undersecretary Eric Domingo said at a press briefing.

Asked if the two bodies were buried, Domingo said, "They have been disposed of correctly. I cannot confirm or deny at this point."

The 44-year-old Chinese man, the second person who tested positive for novel coronavirus in the Philippines died on February 1. He became the first fatal case of nCoV infection outside China.

It was not clear during the said press conference to whom the second body belonged as two deaths were recorded among the persons under investigation for nCoV. 

They were a 29-year-old Chinese man who succumbed to pneumonia and another with underlying restrictive lung disease who also died of pneumonia.

The 29-year-old Chinese died at the San Lazaro Hospital on January 29.

The second case of PUI death was also in Metro Manila but the name of the hospital has not been disclosed to the public.

Domingo refused to give more information about where the two bodies were "properly disposed."

"I cannot divulge... for privacy reasons lang and for the dignity of the buried.... for the dignity of the deceased," Domingo said.

Earlier this week, Secretary Francisco Duque III said crematoriums had been backing out from attending to the corpse of the novel coronavirus-infected Chinese male.

The country's first confirmed nCoV case, a 38-year-old Chinese woman said to be the companion of the fatality, has reportedly already tested  negative for the virus. —NB, GMA News