‘Suddenly gone’: Mourning in the mud Indonesia played by COVID | Indonesia News

Jakarta / Kudus, Indonesia – Puji Apriani’s family was supposed to have a time of celebration – she was pregnant with her second son, and a few weeks after giving birth.

But instead of receiving a new life, his family is in mourning.

“I miss her. She was healthy, the pregnancy was normal. And all of a sudden, she’s gone,” said little sister Ery Jurniastuti.

The Kudus family lives in central Java, one of the most serious effects of Indonesia’s recent surge in COVID-19 cases.

“He felt short of breath, and he was coughing. He also felt contractions in his stomach, ”Ery said.

Kudus is home to nearly 900,000 people, an increase of 7,594 percent in cases since the beginning of this year.

After a sharp rise in cases this month, hospitals in distress have been forced to discard patients.

After being discharged by the two hospitals, Puji was finally admitted, and his oxygen level increased slightly.

But it was too late. His condition worsened and he died in hospital.

“He died first, then the child’s heart was checked. The baby is still inside, they have not come out. He died there. “

Doctors vs. Delta

At the Loekmono Hadi General Hospital in Kudus, Dr. Abdul Aziz Achyar said he was “surprised” wave hardness, which has boosted hospital bed occupancy rates by more than 90 percent.

“During Ramadan, he was very calm. We only had 18 patients. But then, when it started … I was hospitalized too, ”he told Al Jazeera.

One hundred and fifty of his colleagues were also infected with the virus, and two of them died.

Indonesia’s ability to follow the variant is limited, but doctors believe that its occurrence in Kudus was caused in part by the spread of the Delta variant, which was first detected in India.

“We sent the cases from the health center [for genome sequencing]… 62 of the 72 samples were new variants, ”Dr. Abdul said.

At Aisyiyah Kudus Hospital, Dr. Najib Budhiwardoyo said his hospital is full.

“We are full of COVID patients. This second wave started after Eid, ”he said.

“Every hospital in Kudus has this problem … oxygen shortages. We have to be selective; we can only use oxygen for patients with very low saturation.”

The swamp turned into a cemetery

Java’s hospitals are not close to capacity, nor are the cemeteries.

In the Indonesian capital, COVID-19 burial sites, which opened in the early months of the pandemic, such as Pondok Rangoon Cemetery, are already full.

Cemetery workers told Al Jazeera that they are trying to maintain the workload.

“Before COVID, I dug 10 graves every day. But yesterday, we dug 46 graves. There were 51 the day before, ”said Darsiman, a 20-year-old grave.

“We are very tired. We work from morning till night. ”

Darsiman, the 20-year-old tomb, is waiting for Wahyudin to finish writing the name of his lost loved one on a wooden wall landmark. The work is emotional in both men [Jessica Washington/Al Jazeera]

A new grave for the dead as a result of COVID-19 was opened in Rorotan, North Jakarta, a few weeks ago – and more than 800 people have already been buried there.

As the death toll rises, finding a place for the dead is becoming a challenge in this dense city.

The land of Rorotan was like a swamp – the families of the dead have to walk through the mud to pay homage to their loved ones.

“This is a new cemetery … other locations are full. There are a lot of COVID cases, so they need to be brought here,” Darsiman said.

“It has rained so it is muddy. It’s very sad to see funerals here, ambulances are also stuck trying to get in. “

According to writer Wahyudin, his workload has increased due to the pandemic, and working in the cemetery is very exciting.

“I feel very sad to see a lot of burials. When I see these families crying, I think of my family, ”he said.

“Before COVID, I used to make stone holes, but now it’s busy. So many people have died. “

Moments of rest are scarce – as workers lower the plastic-wrapped coffin to the ground, more ambulances arrive, with more dead to bury.

‘India should be our lesson’

This week, Indonesia confirmed two million cases of coronavirus – and more than 55,000 deaths have been confirmed.

The Rorotan cemetery was built in what was once a marsh in northern Jakarta [Fakhrur Roz/Al Jazeera]

The Rorotan cemetery has only been open for a few weeks and more than 800 people have already been buried there [Jessica Washington/Al Jazeera]

Dr. Nadia Siti, head of Infectious Diseases at the Ministry of Health, said the rise in cases is not surprising.

“We know that if there is a festival or event, there are more and more people moving and traveling from other cities,” he said.

“The government had movements in mudik, which is the custom for Muslims to visit their homeland [during Eid Al Fitr]. Still, four or five million people traveled. “

The situation in Kudus and the capital is of particular concern to the Ministry of Health, as bed occupancy rates are high and hospital staff are already plagued by the crisis.

“In Jakarta, the bed occupancy rate is almost 80 to 90 percent. We are ordering hospitals to convert their beds into COVID-19 services so that they are available to patients,” he said.

“The ultimate strategy is to establish rural hospitals with the coordination of the army or the police.”

Cemetery staff are preparing another burial as Indonesian coronavirus accelerates [Fakhrur Rozi/Al Jazeera]

Long before the pandemic, Indonesia had a shortage of medical professionals – and there is concern about how its long-term health system will cope with how infections are predicted to prevail in July.

“With existing doctors, paramedics and nurses, it may not be enough. Maybe we should have an experienced doctor to monitor five or 10 new ones who have no experience caring for patients,” Dr. Nadia said.

“It simply came to our notice then A situation like India. What happened in India should be our lesson. “