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Preparations are under way to convert an ice rink in Milton Keynes into an emergency mortuary “in a matter of days”.
To cope with a rise in deaths due to coronavirus, the Planet Ice venue in South Row will act as a temporary mortuary in the event local funeral directors are unable to hold bodies.
In a statement released on Tuesday, a Milton Keynes Council spokesman said: “As part of sensible planning we are considering what additional temporary mortuary facilities may be needed in Milton Keynes if funeral directors are unable to cope with a rise in deaths from Covid-19.
“We’re working with the owners of Planet Ice to ready the rink as a precaution should it be needed to support local operations.
Field Hospitals around the world to battle Coronavirus
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Aerial view of the construction site of a field hospital to house coronavirus patients in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.
AFP via Getty Images
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A tank of liquid oxygen is lifted from a low loader to be installed at the ExCeL London exhibition centre in London after the government announced it will be converted into a field hospital to help with the coronavirus outbreak and to be known as the NHS Nightingale Hospital.
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Swedish Armed Forces set up a field hospital i
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An Italian soldier walks inside the field hospital built in Crema, Italy
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General view of the construction site of a temporary field hospital to house coronavirus patients for their isolation and recovery at Pacaembu stadium, in Sao Paulo, Brazil
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Workers and soldiers working in a temporary hospital set-up for coronavirus infected patients at the pavilion 9 of the Ifema convention and exhibition center in Madrid. – The field hospital currently has 1,500 beds and it could be expanded to take in up to 5,500 people — which would make it the biggest such facility in Europe
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An aerial view of the military field hospital being constructed at the Ostra Sjukhuset hospital area, part of Shalgrenska Unversity hospital, in Gothenburg, Sweden
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Utility workers, wearing protective suits, stand in front of a tent at a Samaritan’s Purse Emergency Field Hospital on March 20, 2020 in Cremona, near Milan, Italy.
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A general view taken from the rop of the Cremona Hospital shows a Samaritan’s Purse Emergency Field Hospital in Cremona, near Milan, Italy
Getty Images
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A staffer checks equipment in the ICU room at the Samaritan’s Purse field hospital that is being set up in Cremona, northern Italy,
AP
11/27
Workers construct what is believed to be a makeshift morgue behind a hospital during the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in the Manhattan borough of New York
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12/27
Refrigerated trailers are seen parked at the site of a makeshift morgue being built in New York
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13/27
French soldiers take part to an evacuation drill from the military field hospital to the civil hospital in Mulhouse, eastern France
AP
14/27
Beds line up at the military field hospital in Mulhouse, eastern France
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15/27
Two massive temporary buildings meant for use as a field hospital for coronavirus patients stand together on a soccer field in the Seattle suburb of Shoreline, Washington
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16/27
French President Emmanuel Macron (left) wears a face mask during the visit of the military field hospital outside the Emile Muller Hospital in Mulhouse, eastern France
AFP via Getty Images
17/27
A temporary field hospital for up to 28 patients has been built by the Argentine Army in case extra capacity is required to treat cases of COVID-19 outbreak at Campo de Mayo Military base in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Getty Images
18/27
A temporary field hospital for up to 28 patients has been built by the Argentine Army in case extra capacity is required to treat cases of COVID-19 outbreak at Campo de Mayo Military base in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Getty Images
19/27
Workers install support beams in a tent as they prepare a 250-bed field hospital in Miami-Dade’s fairgrounds in Miami.
AP
20/27
General view of the emergency makeshift hospital at the Anhembi Convention Center for coronavirus (COVID-19) patients with a capacity of over 2000 beds in Sao Paulo, Brazil
Getty Images
21/27
King Felipe VI of Spain (right) wearing protective gloves delivering a speech during a visit to a field hospital set up for coronavirus patients at the Ifema convention and exhibition centre in Madrid. The field hospital currently has 1,500 beds and it could be expanded to take in up to 5,500 people — making it the largest hospital in Spain.
AFP via Getty Images
22/27
View of a makeshift field hospital is seen at Miami-Dade County fairground in Miami, Florida
AFP via Getty Images
23/27
THe former IBM factory near Greenock, which has been offered to NHS Scotland for use as a field hospital
PA
24/27
National Guard Soldiers of the 133rd Composite Supply Company, warehouse and inventory the initial shipments of a FEMA Field Hospital for setup at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City
AFP via Getty Images
25/27
National Guard Soldiers of the 133rd Composite Supply Company, warehouse and inventory the initial shipments of a FEMA Field Hospital for setup at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City
AFP via Getty Images
26/27
THe former IBM factory near Greenock, which has been offered to NHS Scotland for use as a field hospital
PA
27/27
French President Emmanuel Macron (centre) wears a face mask during the visit of the military field hospital outside the Emile Muller Hospital in Mulhouse, eastern France
AFP via Getty Images
1/27
Aerial view of the construction site of a field hospital to house coronavirus patients in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.
AFP via Getty Images
2/27
A tank of liquid oxygen is lifted from a low loader to be installed at the ExCeL London exhibition centre in London after the government announced it will be converted into a field hospital to help with the coronavirus outbreak and to be known as the NHS Nightingale Hospital.
AFP via Getty Images
3/27
Swedish Armed Forces set up a field hospital i
AFP via Getty Images
4/27
An Italian soldier walks inside the field hospital built in Crema, Italy
AP
5/27
General view of the construction site of a temporary field hospital to house coronavirus patients for their isolation and recovery at Pacaembu stadium, in Sao Paulo, Brazil
AFP via Getty Images
6/27
Workers and soldiers working in a temporary hospital set-up for coronavirus infected patients at the pavilion 9 of the Ifema convention and exhibition center in Madrid. – The field hospital currently has 1,500 beds and it could be expanded to take in up to 5,500 people — which would make it the biggest such facility in Europe
AFP via Getty Images
7/27
An aerial view of the military field hospital being constructed at the Ostra Sjukhuset hospital area, part of Shalgrenska Unversity hospital, in Gothenburg, Sweden
AP
8/27
Utility workers, wearing protective suits, stand in front of a tent at a Samaritan’s Purse Emergency Field Hospital on March 20, 2020 in Cremona, near Milan, Italy.
Getty Images
9/27
A general view taken from the rop of the Cremona Hospital shows a Samaritan’s Purse Emergency Field Hospital in Cremona, near Milan, Italy
Getty Images
10/27
A staffer checks equipment in the ICU room at the Samaritan’s Purse field hospital that is being set up in Cremona, northern Italy,
AP
11/27
Workers construct what is believed to be a makeshift morgue behind a hospital during the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in the Manhattan borough of New York
Reuters
12/27
Refrigerated trailers are seen parked at the site of a makeshift morgue being built in New York
AP
13/27
French soldiers take part to an evacuation drill from the military field hospital to the civil hospital in Mulhouse, eastern France
AP
14/27
Beds line up at the military field hospital in Mulhouse, eastern France
AP
15/27
Two massive temporary buildings meant for use as a field hospital for coronavirus patients stand together on a soccer field in the Seattle suburb of Shoreline, Washington
AP
16/27
French President Emmanuel Macron (left) wears a face mask during the visit of the military field hospital outside the Emile Muller Hospital in Mulhouse, eastern France
AFP via Getty Images
17/27
A temporary field hospital for up to 28 patients has been built by the Argentine Army in case extra capacity is required to treat cases of COVID-19 outbreak at Campo de Mayo Military base in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Getty Images
18/27
A temporary field hospital for up to 28 patients has been built by the Argentine Army in case extra capacity is required to treat cases of COVID-19 outbreak at Campo de Mayo Military base in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Getty Images
19/27
Workers install support beams in a tent as they prepare a 250-bed field hospital in Miami-Dade’s fairgrounds in Miami.
AP
20/27
General view of the emergency makeshift hospital at the Anhembi Convention Center for coronavirus (COVID-19) patients with a capacity of over 2000 beds in Sao Paulo, Brazil
Getty Images
21/27
King Felipe VI of Spain (right) wearing protective gloves delivering a speech during a visit to a field hospital set up for coronavirus patients at the Ifema convention and exhibition centre in Madrid. The field hospital currently has 1,500 beds and it could be expanded to take in up to 5,500 people — making it the largest hospital in Spain.
AFP via Getty Images
22/27
View of a makeshift field hospital is seen at Miami-Dade County fairground in Miami, Florida
AFP via Getty Images
23/27
THe former IBM factory near Greenock, which has been offered to NHS Scotland for use as a field hospital
PA
24/27
National Guard Soldiers of the 133rd Composite Supply Company, warehouse and inventory the initial shipments of a FEMA Field Hospital for setup at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City
AFP via Getty Images
25/27
National Guard Soldiers of the 133rd Composite Supply Company, warehouse and inventory the initial shipments of a FEMA Field Hospital for setup at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City
AFP via Getty Images
26/27
THe former IBM factory near Greenock, which has been offered to NHS Scotland for use as a field hospital
PA
27/27
French President Emmanuel Macron (centre) wears a face mask during the visit of the military field hospital outside the Emile Muller Hospital in Mulhouse, eastern France
AFP via Getty Images
“Part of Elder Gate (starting from South Elder roundabout) and a short section of Avebury Boulevard will be closed temporarily to facilitate this. The supermarket access is unaffected.
“Ice rinks elsewhere in the UK have previously been used as temporary mortuary facilities, as their existing infrastructure can typically be adapted faster and more effectively than other buildings.”
The news comes after work began on a temporary mortuary at Birmingham Airport which could hold up to 12,000 bodies in a worst-case scenario.
Milton Keynes Council leader Peter Marland said the local authority is keeping the 2,800 capacity ice rink open to ensure the venue remains at the temperature needed for the temporary morgue.
He said work to convert the rink would take “a matter of days” and predicts the venue could hold bodies “in the hundreds”.
He added: “We have been planning for a while around capacity as we picked up quite early that it could be an issue for us.
“We only have one crematorium and the next nearest one is in Wing.
“If the worst is to happen we wanted to make sure that that person and their family had as much dignity as possible.”
In the UK, a total of 1,789 patients have died in hospital after testing positive for coronavirus.
