ARCHIVED - Madrid ice rink to be used as a morgue as the coronavirus death toll soars in the Spanish capital

The Palacio de Hielo offers the cold necessary to store bodies awaiting burial or cremation

The extent to which the coronavirus continues to spread throughout Spain, and particularly in the national capital, has been made abundantly clear by confirmation by the Mayor, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, that the city’s “Palacio de Hielo” ice rink complex could soon be put to use as a temporary morgue as the demand for burials and cremations rises.

The management of the Palacio de Hielo made an offer to the regional government for its facilities to be made available for this purpose which has in principle been agreed on by the regional health authorities, and on Monday afternoon some sources report that the first coffins were seen arriving there. However, a regional government source is quoted in the press as saying that “we are waiting for the relevant official in City Hall to give us the go-ahead”.

In explaining the move the regional health authorities clarify that the Palacio del Hielo has “the necessary cold conditions to preserve bodies,” and that if the plans go ahead coffins will be placed “on a surface made of polymer materials around two to three centimetres thick.” At the same time failsafe procedures would be established to ensure that the coffins are currently identified in order to prevent any confusion while the deceased are awaiting cremation or burial.

The Palacio de Hielo is located in the north-east of Madrid, just a five-minute walk from the Ifema exhibition centre, which has been converted into a temporary field hospital to house coronavirus patients presenting only mild symptoms. As well as the ice rink, it also includes a shopping mall, restaurants and numerous other leisure facilities.

It has to be remembered that so far the figures related to coronavirus are even more frightening in Madrid than in any other region in the country. By Monday lunchtime over 10,000 of the 33,000 cases reported in the whole of Spain were in and around the capital, while the death toll in the city had risen to 1,263, approximately 60 per cent of the nationwide total.

The complexity of the situation in the city was further highlighted on Monday by an announcement that Madrid’s municipal funeral services will no longer collect victims of Covid-19 due to a lack of protective gear for their employees, a decision communicated to Salvador Illa, the Minister for health, by the Mayor.

Image: @dreamspalaciodehielo Facebook

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What to do if you are in the Region of Murcia and believe you may have contracted the virus

The regional government has set up a special helpline to supply information to members of the public (900 121212), and also urges people to call the 112 emergency services line if they suspect that they may have contracted the virus rather than going straight to hospital or to a medical centre. Medical staff will be sent to your home to test for the virus.

The Region’s public hospitals have limited the number of visitors to just one per patient.

Sensible precautions

The advice being issued to members of the public by medical authorities all over the world coincides on the following points:

- Wash hands frequently with either soap and water or a sanitiser gel

- Catch coughs and sneezes with disposable tissues – and throw the tissues away immediately after use before immediately washing your hands!

- If you don’t have a tissue, use your sleeve – and wash the item of clothing used at the next opportunity

- AVOID touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands

- AVOID close contact with people who are unwell

- Don´t panic!