Temporary Fulham Mortuary Has Not Been Used
Tented structure on Bagley’s Lane set up to handle predicted rise in deaths
West London Coroners' Court, Bagley's Lane. Picture: Julia Gregory
A temporary mortuary in Fulham set up to help cope with deaths from coronavirus has remained unused so far.
The tented structure has capacity for 150 bodies and was erected beside West London Coroners Court in Bagley’s Lane. It was set up in April at the height of the pandemic.
Hammersmith and Fulham council is responsible for caring for the coroners’ court.
A spokesman said it has not had to be used to help cope with the high number of deaths during the coronavirus crisis.
It could have been used for people from Hammersmith and Fulham, Ealing, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Richmond and Kingston who died from the virus.
The mortuary was used after the bodies of 30 British holiday-makers were repatriated via Heathrow Airport after they were killed in a terror attack in 2015. They were amongst 38 people who were killed when a gunman went on a rampage at the Tunisian resort of Sousse.
A similar tented building was erected at Westminster coroners court in Horseferry Road in central London in March for people who died from the virus in the boroughs of Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea.
Earlier in May, Wandsworth councillors heard that a temporary mortuary for up to 900 bodies at Putney Vale Crematorium had so far “been unused” during the coronavirus pandemic.
As of 29 May there have been 37,837 coronavirus-related deaths in the UK.
And according to the latest government statistics, 1,192 people in Ealing, 663 Hammersmith and Fulham residents, 780 in Hillingdon, 729 in Hounslow, 520 in Kingston and 408 in Richmond have tested positive for coronavirus.
Julia Gregory - Local Democracy Reporter
May 29, 2020