Reopening of the much-needed council-owned crematorium in the City could face further delays and is unlikely to resume operations this financial year.
Amid the increased numbers of people dying daily, mostly due to Covid-19, the facility, at Lala Ngoxolo Cemetery in Benoni, stopped operating earlier this year to allow essential facility maintenance work to take place.
However, the City of Ekurhuleni confirmed that progress in the project to refurbish the facility has stalled, as no money had been allocated to renovate and refurbish the crematorium this year.
“The facility is being refurbished, but the project is on hold as no budget has been approved to complete the work in this financial year. The project will resume when a budget is made available and the reopening date is not known at this stage,” explained metro spokesperson Zweli Dlamini.
Dlamini, however, pointed out that the cemeteries in the City are able to provide burial services to communities within and around the City’s jurisdiction, during and outside of the Covid-19 peak periods.
The Advertiser previously reported that the prolonged closure had negatively impacted local funeral parlours, as they are forced to travel to distant places to have people’s bodies cremated. Some travel as far as Mpumalanga, Krugersdorp and other facilities in the Johannesburg metro.
One of the local undertakers, who asked not to be identified, said due to the closure of the nearest facility, apart from the emotional distress, families who have lost their loved ones are also facing a logistical nightmare in performing the last rites.
To make matters worse, finding slots at crematoriums outside Ekurhuleni is not always easy, as they are struggling to cope with demands.
The concerned undertaker said with the unprecedented number of deaths during the current wave of Covid-19 and the influx of bodies in Ekurhuleni, these facilities are overflowing.
“Grieving relatives of the dead are forced to wait weeks for the bodies of their loved ones to be cremated. Travelling to distant places pushes up the cost of rendering the service.”
Also Read: Metro’s crematoriums remain closed amid Covid-19 surge
