The woman was verifiably dead Monday morning.(Representative pic)
A crematorium worker in Brazil got the shock of his life after finding a 90-year-old woman still alive inside a body bag after she was pronounced dead. Citing a Brazilian media outlet, the New York Post reported that the incident took place in the city of San Jose on Saturday, just hours after hospital staff declared Norma Silveira da Silva dead. The 90-year-old was put in a bag and sent to the morgue, where the crematorium worker made the chilling discovery.
Norma Silveira da Silva's caretaker and friend Jessica Martins Silvi Pereira said that the 90-year-old had been admitted to Sao Jose Regional Hospital on Friday in a very poor condition. She was suffering from a problem with her liver and was unconscious, the New York Post reported. When Ms Jessica visited the woman on Saturday afternoon, she said that Ms Norma managed to open one eye and see her. However, later that night, she was notified by the hospital staff that the 90-year-old had passed away.
The hospital issued the first death certificate for the woman at 11:40pm, claiming that she had died due to a "urinary tract infection" Ms Jessica said that the 90-year-old's body was hastily sent off to the morgue without allowing her loved ones a chance to see her.
The crematorium worker then went to collect the deceased patient around 1:30am. But when he opened the bag, he noticed that the woman's body was still warm, which was surprising given the amount of time that had elapsed. "When he opened the bag, she was breathing very weakly. And, as she was no longer conscious, she couldn't ask for help, she tried to breathe and couldn't." Ms Jessica said, according to Fox News.
The 90-year-old woman was immediately taken back to a hospital room after the chilling discovery. However, she was verifiably dead Monday morning.
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Ms Jessica claimed that her elderly friend had spent nearly 2 hours inside the bag "almost suffocating to death". However, it is not clear if she died from not receiving medical treatment in time or from an underlying condition. The hospital issued the second death certificate around 5:00am and listed her cause of death as "septic shock".
Now, according to the Post, Ms Jessica said that the patient's family is planning to sue the hospital. "It's a neglect that I wouldn't wish on anyone," she said.
Separately, the state Department of Health has reportedly launched an investigation into the incident.