Coronavirus in Europe

Norway: anti covid measures affect funeral services because of declining mortality

15 Jul, 2020

The covid-19 pandemic crisis in Norway is also affecting funeral services in an unprecedented way.

The declining mortality rate and the inability to perform funeral ceremonies have forced half a dozen companies operating in the sector to apply for state aid.

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Coronavirus in Europe

The Lande family, leaders in the field for three generations, underlined the uniqueness of the situation: "It seems that the measures imposed to fight the coronavirus pandemic have also been effective on other viruses," Erik Lande explained to AFP - Agence France-Presse, "to the point that some of the elderly people who would have died under normal circumstances are still alive.

The company usually runs an average of 30 funeral ceremonies in a month, but after the introduction of anti covid-19 measures in Norway, in March, the number dropped to less than ten.