A temporary morgue built at the BAE Systems site at Warton begins operating from today.
AdvertisementThe Lancashire Resilience Forum has been working to build the temporary facility in an aircraft hanger.
It was constructed in less than a week by Lancashire County Council and is now ready to receive the deceased from the coronavirus pandemic if needed.
The county council say it is able to house 1,000 of the deceased from across Lancashire, Blackburn with Darwen and Blackpool. It is hoped it will never need to be used to its full capacity.
Leader of the county council Geoff Driver said: This facility means we can ensure that the deceased can be treated with dignity and respect before they are laid to rest.
“This was a challenging and quite upsetting project for all those who have been working on it and I would like to give my thanks to the Lancashire County Council staff and our partners who have worked night and day to get this facility ready in less than a week.
“I would also like to thank BAE Systems for their support who have provided this secure and private site free of charge to support the people of Lancashire in this crisis.”
Those who have died will be taken by funeral directors to the facility, where they can remain until being taken to their funeral.
No visiting of the morgue by relatives will be allowed.
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Detective Superintendent Andy Cribbin, who is coordinating the Local Resilience Forum activity for the management of deaths, said: “There has been an enormous amount of work undertaken in a very short time to get this facility ready to receive the deceased, and I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all those who have been involved.
“We hope never to use the facility but if we have to, bereaved families can be reassured that their loved ones will be treated with the utmost dignity and respect.”
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