Trucks for bodies line Brooklyn pier as funeral homes remain overwhelmed

NEW YORK - As the number of deaths from coronavirus-related causes continues to mount in New York City, funeral homes remain overwhelmed.

A pier in Brooklyn was turned into a temporary morgue to help cope with the crisis. Brooklyn resident Josh Begley shared a video on May 4 that shows several refrigerated trucks lined up at the 39th Street Pier in Sunset Park.

"There are now 27 refrigeration trucks," Begley wrote. "The scale of this unfathomable."

>About 50 bodies found in U-Haul trucks outside Brooklyn funeral home

Begley also posted photos showing two entrances to the lot; one for military vehicles and one for funeral directors.

Dina Maniotis, an official with the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, said her office had lifted a previously-enforced 15-day deadline to collect remains to ease pressure on funeral homes and families, Gothamist reported.

"We're trying to support the funeral director community so they don't have to rush and claim bodies. And then they're struggling with the backlog to get them buried or the remains cremated," Maniotis said during a press call, according to Gothamist. "There is no need for them to worry or for families to worry that the remains will go to a city cemetery unless they specially ask for that option."

The site would allow funeral homes to claim bodies between 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 p.m. from May 5, the report said.

As of Monday, 30% of the trucks had been filled, the New York Post reported. 

Last week, police officers responding to calls about a foul smell found dozens of bodies on ice inside rented U-Haul trucks parked outside a Brooklyn funeral home. The funeral home had become overwhelmed by coronavirus victims, according to officials.