When and why they are buried in a closed coffin. Why was Mavrodi buried in a closed coffin? Why is a person buried in a closed coffin?

The founder of the MMM financial pyramid, Sergei Mavrodi, was buried in a closed coffin, REN TV reports. The businessman’s funeral took place at Troekurovskoye Cemetery behind closed doors. Only his family and friends came to say goodbye to him.

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I remember there was a game of thimbles... wasn't that the case?

Wasn't Mavrodi buried in a closed coffin?

The founder of the MMM financial pyramid, Sergei Mavrodi, was buried in a closed coffin. The businessman’s funeral took place at Troekurovskoye Cemetery behind closed doors. Only his family and friends came to say goodbye to him. I can imagine how many different versions there will now be around this burial. If Mavrodi was buried in a closed coffin, it means that it was for a reason.

What the newspaper people in Tyrnetik can’t come up with. They made it up that Mavrodi’s relatives abandoned him and they would bury him like a dog, in a common grave. They came up with the idea that Mavrodi did not die a natural death. Now there will be talk that it is not Mavrodi in the coffin. They say that if they didn’t see him in the coffin and the coffin was closed, then Mavrodi once again hid from the investors. He deceived people, invented death and disappeared. A man of legend, a man of mystery. And his death is also shrouded in mystery - who exactly was buried at the Troekurovsky cemetery.

Seeing a coffin in a dream foretells obstacles; for the elderly - the imminent death or loss of a dear relative; for family people - profit and prosperity; for the young - a wedding and a long, comfortable life.

A coffin seen in a church means an unsuccessful marriage. An open coffin is a sign of a cheerful celebration. Strewn with flowers - to failures and illnesses. Seeing a friend in a coffin means receiving important news. Lying in a coffin means acquiring a calm occupation and a long life. Carrying a coffin in a dream is a harbinger of illness that will darken the upcoming celebration. Seeing others carry him is a sign of sad circumstances and bad news.

Lowering the coffin into the grave is a tragic death. Digging a hole for a coffin is a happy marriage. Burying a coffin is a chronic disease. To nail up a coffin means to be very frightened.

Seeing yourself sitting on a coffin means quarrels followed by repentance and mutual forgiveness. Buying a coffin means incurring large expenses.

Seeing a tomb in a dream means receiving protection in reality, and through it finding good luck. Being locked in a tomb in a dream means disappointment and withdrawal from business.

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Seeing how the coffin is closed, we say goodbye to our loved ones. The heart is filled with pain of separation. People come up to kiss the deceased one last time. But sometimes relatives, coming to the place, decide to bury them in a closed coffin. You don’t see how they close the coffin, and you don’t believe: inside is a loved one.

Should I close the coffin?

When organizing any (even funeral) event, answer two main questions:

1. How much do you want to pay?
2. What do you want to get in exchange for your money?

This decision determines how the funeral will take place. Some choose simplicity and modesty, others express respect to the deceased through a magnificent farewell. It is important to maintain a balance between capabilities, traditions and the will of the deceased.

By honestly admitting that the deceased is disfigured by death, relatives can choose a closed-casket funeral. This way they will get rid of talk about how illness makes a person unrecognizable.

Closed coffin funeral

- “He turned into a very old man”, “He dried up like he was 90 years old,” - those who saw the body of the satirist Mikhail Zadornov could not hold back their horror. It becomes clear why Hvorostovsky’s coffin was closed. Both artists died from a brain tumor, which causes sudden weight loss (more than 10% of weight per month) and literally burns the body from the inside. Therefore, Dmitry Hvorostovsky’s family displayed a closed coffin with the artist’s body at their farewell. According to the will, the ashes after cremation were divided in half. One part is buried at the Novodevichy cemetery in the capital. Another went to the baritone’s homeland - Krasnoyarsk. In the city where the singer gave his last concert, it is planned to build a memorial to store the ashes.

When and how to close the coffin

Regardless of how the funeral takes place, the coffin will be tightly closed. This happens either before farewell or after the funeral service, in a church or cemetery. Previously, long nails were used for this. Now special fittings have been created: screws, latches and carabiners. Fastenings protect the body from damage by the cover during transportation.

The funeral organizer at the cemetery offers to say goodbye to the person, people line up near the coffin. After a farewell speech, which says that a citizen of the country has finished his life’s journey and the bright memory of him will remain in our hearts, a veil is lowered over his face. Fresh flowers are not buried with the deceased; they are removed at the very end of the ceremony. The funeral director, with the help of a loader, carefully places the lid on the coffin and finally closes it. The body is lowered into the grave.

Not all cultures (such as Islam) have a tradition of closing the coffin. In Russia, this is a folk tradition that has no Christian explanation. In ancient times, at the funerals of suicides and other “suspicious” dead, the coffin was hammered with aspen pegs so that the dead would not disturb the living.

EXPERIENCE OF NOVOSIBIRSK CREMATORIUM

The articles of our foreign colleagues reflect the aesthetic moments of funerals - the demonstration of a dead body at ceremonies. In our practice, there were practically no controversial situations described above. On the contrary, most funeral customers want to see the face of their deceased. It is a long-standing Russian tradition to spend the last moments at the coffin, and our specialists who prepare the deceased for funerals are highly qualified and will make the farewell at the coffin as safe and aesthetically pleasing as possible. Thanatopracticians of the Novosibirsk Crematorium professionally perform sanitary and hygienic preparation, embalming, create a beautiful face of the deceased for farewell, and in special cases they carry out high-quality facial reconstruction after an accident or other traumatic fatal situations.
Saying goodbye to the body at a closed coffin in a crematorium at the request of customers is a rare exception. For example, when, according to cultural traditions, the family of the deceased does not need to look at the dead body, or in situations where the body is so disfigured that relatives do not want to see their loved one in this condition, but prefer to remember him alive.
The Novosibirsk crematorium has established a sanitary regime for farewell ceremonies, according to which there are cases in which the coffin is prohibited from opening.
Unfortunately, in the Russian Federation there are no sanitary and hygienic rules regulating the actions of funeral servants and employees of funeral homes when delivering the deceased to their home or to the funeral hall of a funeral home or crematorium. In Russian legislation one can find documents regulating the procedure for examining corpses, autopsies and forensic medical examinations, and instructions for the anti-epidemic regime of pathology departments. They contain information about the mandatory use of precautionary measures when receiving, examining and storing corpses that are suspected of having particularly dangerous infectious diseases (DID).
For example, there is “Instruction for organizing work and observing the anti-epidemic regime by pathological departments and forensic medical examination bureaus in cases of suspicion or detection of particularly dangerous infections” dated December 12, 1978. It prescribes an algorithm for working with corpses that have shown signs of acute infectious diseases, when during work more attention is paid to protective equipment, rules for collecting and storing corpse material and disinfection of premises, up to the involvement of teams of sanitary-epidemiological or disinfection stations when the disease is epidemic or endemic in nature and emergency safety measures are taken. The same instructions also contain special rules for preparing a corpse for delivery and burial.
Let me note that this is an algorithm for special infectious regimes, although today the question is controversial as to how dangerous modern infections and viruses are, which were not a global health problem when this instruction was created (1978). We are primarily interested in what hygienic safety measures should be observed by funeral servants, relatives receiving the dead in the morgue for burial in ordinary cases, when during their lifetime they had tuberculosis, pneumonia, hepatitis, AIDS, etc. If a dead body can conceal themselves an infectious threat in the morgue, why didn’t any of the legislators pay attention to the infectious safety of funerals? This is where the reason for the occurrence of typical occupational (nosocomial) diseases of mortuary and funeral workers who do not observe personal hygiene and sanitary safety measures lies.

SANITARY RULES AND STANDARDS SANPIN 2.1.1279-03
INSTRUCTIONS
on the organization of work and compliance with the anti-epidemic regime by pathological and anatomical departments and the forensic medical examination bureau in cases of suspicion or detection of particularly dangerous infections (extractions)
II. Corpse toilet
Upon completion of the autopsy, it is necessary to insert gauze, cotton wool or rags moistened with a disinfectant solution into the chest and abdominal cavities, and add dry bleach or chloramine. The corpse is carefully sewn up in the usual way, wiped with a disinfectant solution, dressed in accordance with the requests of the relatives, wrapped in a sheet soaked in a disinfectant solution, and placed in a coffin, at the bottom of which a 10 cm thick layer of bleach is poured. The inside of the coffin is lined with medical oilcloth. The seams of the upholstery should be on the side walls of the coffin and applied from top to bottom to prevent liquid leakage. The same amount of bleach is poured on top of the corpse. The coffin lid is nailed down. When buried without a coffin, the corpse is washed with a disinfectant solution and, in accordance with national customs, wrapped in cloth or felt, which must be soaked in a disinfectant solution.
V. Tactics in the event of accidental discovery of particularly dangerous infectious diseases during an autopsy, in the event of an “accident” during an autopsy and during the exhumation of a corpse
If the suspicion that the patient’s death resulted from a particularly dangerous infectious disease arose during the autopsy, measures are taken to prevent infection of personnel and the possible spread of infection into the environment.
All autopsies performed in the hall are temporarily suspended. The suspicious corpse is covered with a sheet not soaked in disinfectants. Close windows and vents. The flow of wash water into the sewer network is stopped; the latter is collected in containers with disinfectant solutions placed under the sectional table.
Those present at the autopsy, with the exception of those who performed the autopsy, are removed to adjacent rooms without the right to leave the morgue. It is prohibited to enter the sectional room without protective clothing.
The head of the department, the chief physician of the medical institution or his deputy and local health authorities (according to subordination) are notified of the suspicion that has arisen, who call consultants from anti-plague institutions or departments of especially dangerous infections of sanitary and epidemiological stations.
VI. Transportation and burial of corpses
A specialist autopsying a corpse that has raised suspicion of a particularly dangerous infection determines whether there was any contact of infectious material with the skin of exposed parts of the body and mucous membranes. If there is a suspicion that infectious material has entered the mucous membranes, the latter are immediately treated with a solution of antibiotics appropriate for the infection.
General management and responsibility for proper transportation, burial of corpses, and subsequent disinfection are assigned to the sanitary and epidemiological service of the region, district, city.
In cases where the diagnosis of a particularly dangerous infectious disease is beyond doubt, the corpse is not given to relatives and is buried in compliance with the requirements of the anti-epidemic regime.
If the diagnosis is in doubt and requires bacteriological confirmation, you can do two things:
1. Without waiting for the results of a bacteriological study, bury the corpse in accordance with the requirements of the anti-epidemic regime, without releasing it to relatives.
2. Delay the burial until the results of the bacteriological examination are obtained, ensuring complete isolation of the corpse and its safety. If the result of the bacteriological examination is negative, the corpse will be released for normal burial; if the result is positive, the corpse will be buried in accordance with the requirements of the anti-epidemic regime.
To dig graves, transport, and bury the corpse, a burial group is assembled, including at least 3-5 people with the participation of workers from disinfection stations, disinfection departments, anti-plague institutions, and departments of especially dangerous infections of sanitary and epidemiological stations. The group is carefully instructed on the procedure for carrying out work, the features of burial, the rules for using a protective suit, and strict adherence to personal preventive measures.
Persons transporting a corpse to the burial site, if plague, anthrax, or pulmonary glanders are suspected, wear a type I anti-plague suit; if cholera, smallpox, melioidosis and other forms of glanders are suspected - a type II anti-plague suit.
The corpse is usually transported to the burial site in a coffin. In exceptional cases, when there is no coffin, it is possible to transport the corpse wrapped in medical oilcloth (a bag made from it).
Transportation of corpses to the burial site is carried out using any type of transport that can be easily disinfected. The most convenient are ambulance vehicles of the UAZ-452 “A” type.
Burial is carried out in a coffin in public cemeteries. Burial without a coffin is permitted in exceptional cases. When buried without a coffin, the corpse, dressed in accordance with national customs, must be wrapped in a sheet generously moistened with a disinfectant solution. The presence of relatives at the burial is possible, provided there is no contact with the corpse.
For burial, a grave is dug 2 m long, 1 m wide, 2 m deep, and a 10 cm thick layer of bleach is poured onto the bottom. Bleach is poured onto the coffin, lowered into the grave, in a layer of 10-15 cm. The grave is covered with earth.
If the autopsy was carried out at the edge of the grave, the first to be dumped is the soil from which the autopsy mound was made, mixed with bleach.
To carry out all burial work, in addition to protective clothing, it is necessary to have shovels, ropes, a hydraulic remote control, buckets (2 pcs.), canisters or flasks with water, dry bleach, Lysol, chloramine, oilcloth bags for transporting protective clothing soaked in disinfectant solutions .
At the end of the burial, tools, protective clothing, transport, etc. disinfected on site in the prescribed manner. Persons who took part in the burial are subject to medical supervision for the period of incubation.

Sanitary rules of the Novosibirsk crematorium
At the beginning of our activities, we did not have practical skills, but we assumed that when working with corpses it was necessary to observe a special sanitary regime in addition to the mandatory treatment of premises with disinfectants and bactericidal UV installations. We consulted with employees of morgues and funeral homes, observed their work in Russia and abroad. We concluded for ourselves that we shouldn’t wait for Russia’s chief orderlies to think about the problem of funeral safety and the fact that viruses and bacteria are rapidly evolving. The Novosibirsk crematorium has developed sanitary rules for the enterprise, on the basis of which our managers engaged in order acceptance services explain to customers why they will have to say goodbye at a closed coffin. There are those who do not agree with our rules and demand to show a legislative justification. Even with the diagnosis of the deceased “Open form of tuberculosis,” they say with notes of complaint: “We looked after him for a year and did not become infected...”. In such cases, we have to prove that we have no right to risk the health of funeral servants, thanatopractors, masters of ceremonies, and other visitors to the crematorium.
From the first days of the crematorium’s operation, we developed a productive relationship with the chief sanitary doctor of the Novosibirsk region (now the head of the Rospotrebnadzor Office for the Novosibirsk region) Valery Nikolaevich Mikheev, who allowed us to call him for consultations at any time of the day if necessary. There were several such cases. For example, the crematorium workers were alarmed and did not know how to organize a farewell ceremony for relatives arriving from China with a passenger on a transcontinental flight who had died of bird flu. After consultations with V.N. Mikheev, the crematorium workers showed will, literacy and tact in carrying out the ritual.
Another such case was associated with the funeral of an HIV-infected deceased, when relatives insisted that the farewell must be with an open coffin. On the face of the deceased there was an extensive disintegrating tumor and a deep weeping wound. And although, according to V.?N. Mikheeva, AIDS does not fly through the air, it was strongly recommended that relatives be denied farewell with an open coffin. Admittedly, in most cases, a tactful and firm warning about the potential danger of an infected dead body for those saying goodbye is perceived with understanding.

FROM THE ORDER OF OPERATIONS OF THE NOVOSIBIRSK CREMATORIUM
2.8. Sanitary and hygienic requirements.
2.8.1. If the deceased had tuberculosis, pediculosis, viral diseases, putrefactive changes or a strong cadaveric odor during his lifetime, the farewell ceremony should be held at a closed coffin to ensure sanitary and hygienic safety.

INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR INFECTIOUS DISEASES (ISID)
In 2002, the International Society of Infectious Diseases (ISID) released the second updated edition of the Guidelines for Infection Control in Hospitals. 49 authors from 13 countries took part in the preparation of the manual, translated into many languages ​​of the world. The book examines the significance and epidemiology of nosocomial infections, as well as the basic principles of infection control in health care institutions. The Russian translation of the publication was released in 2003. It was a long-awaited scientific work, about which Professor L. S. Strachunsky, President of the Interregional Association for Clinical Microbiology and Antimicrobial Chemotherapy of Russia (IACMAC), the scientific editor of the translation writes in the preface: “Despite the significant With the progress of medicine, the problem of nosocomial infections (NI) remains one of the most pressing. The increase in the incidence of NI is associated with an increase in the frequency of invasive procedures, the spread of multidrug-resistant bacteria, and changes in the structure of the patient population. Official statistics show that in developed countries, NI develop in 5-10% of hospitalized patients and lead to an increase in hospitalization, mortality and treatment costs. In Russia, about 60 thousand cases of NI are registered annually, although their estimated number is 2.5 million.

Nosocomial infection is any clinically recognizable infectious disease that develops in a patient as a result of his seeking treatment or stay in a hospital, as well as any infectious disease of a hospital employee that develops as a result of his work in this institution, regardless of the time of onset of symptoms (after or while in hospital). In our case, we mean morgues, funeral homes and crematoria.

Adhering to the principles of infection control is critical to solving the problem of NI. In this regard, the International Society of Infectious Diseases (ISID) has issued Guidelines for Infection Control in Hospitals. It is addressed to a wide range of specialists and will be useful in their daily work not only for medical workers, but also for specialists in the funeral industry.
This book has a separate section that reveals many of our previous theoretical assumptions and thanks to which we only strengthened our tough position in ensuring the sanitary regime in the Novosibirsk crematorium. Let me give you an example.
From the "Guide to Infection Control in Hospitals"
Chapter 42. Infectious hazards of cadaveric material (T.D. Healing, P. Hoffman, S.E. J. Young)
Key Point: Cadaveric material may pose a hazard to personnel handling it. None of the microorganisms that were the cause of mass deaths in the past (the causative agents of plague, cholera, typhoid fever, tuberculosis, anthrax, smallpox) can survive for a long time in buried corpses. The corpses of recently deceased people may be infected with various pathogens, including those that pose a serious danger to others, which include mycobacteria, streptococci, enteropathogens, microorganisms that cause transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (for example, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease), hepatitis B and C viruses, HIV, hemorrhagic fever viruses and, possibly, causative agents of meningitis and sepsis (especially meningococcal etiology).

TUBERCULOSIS
Tuberculosis microbacteria are resistant to environmental factors and can survive in soil, water, manure and other objects for several months and years.
The tuberculosis bacillus is most often transmitted by airborne droplets. Not only cough and sputum are dangerous, but also dust. In humid places without access to the sun, the causative agent of tuberculosis lives for months. Rarely, tuberculosis is acquired through food (milk or meat), water (if water bodies are contaminated with wastewater from tuberculosis hospitals or farms with sick livestock), or in utero. Sometimes tuberculosis becomes infected through wounds on the skin of people who dissect corpses or cut up meat carcasses.
The corpses of animals that died from tuberculosis and the affected organs of forcedly killed animals under certain conditions can also be factors in the transmission of the pathogen. In bodies and affected organs, Mycobacterium tuberculosis can survive for 2 months. up to 2 years. Rotting and decomposition of corpses has little effect on the causative agent of tuberculosis. Untimely removal of corpses and damaged organs of killed animals leads to contamination of the soil, pastures, and water bodies.

Known Facts
Corpses cremated to skeletal remains are not dangerous.
Remains of soft tissue from a corpse may pose an infectious hazard.
Theoretically, the possible danger of old corpses is associated with the anthrax pathogen, which can form spores that are resistant to adverse factors. However, it is unlikely; Moreover, people have low susceptibility to this type of infection.
The causative agents of most infections that lead to death cannot survive for a long time after the death of the host organism.
Controversial issues
It was believed that the smallpox virus was able to survive in buried corpses. There is currently no convincing evidence for this theory. However, if the fact of infection of a corpse with smallpox cannot be ruled out, its exhumation should be carried out by persons vaccinated against this infection and with a pronounced post-vaccination scar. Vaccination against smallpox should not be specifically given to persons who will work with such a corpse. The risk of developing adverse reactions associated with vaccination significantly exceeds the theoretical risk of infection with a virus preserved in a corpse.
Practical recommendations
Table 42.1 When working with old and recently deceased cadavers, regardless of the type of pathogen theoretically present, the risk of infection can be significantly reduced by following these recommendations:
- Cover skin lesions and incised wounds with waterproof bandages.
- Carefully handle any damage that occurs when working with cadaveric material.
- Observe the rules of personal hygiene.
- Use protective clothing (Table 42.1).
In most cases, sick patients pose a much greater danger than corpses, including people who have died from infectious diseases. In a living organism, the pathogen can multiply and be easily transmitted from person to person. In this regard, the patient can act as a source of infection for a long time. After the death of the host organism, most pathogens stop reproducing and quickly die.
Corpses of recently deceased people
Table 42.2 The range of diseases and microorganisms that can pose a threat to humans varies in different parts of the world and includes tuberculosis, streptococcal infections, gastrointestinal infections, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), viral hepatitis, HIV infection, various viral infections (especially viral hemorrhagic fevers such as Lassa fever and Ebola) and possibly meningitis and sepsis (especially of meningococcal etiology) (Table 42.2). Recently there were reports of two cases of tuberculosis infection during embalming of corpses. As with older cadavers, the use of appropriate protective clothing can significantly reduce the risk of infection, but for some infections additional precautions are recommended.

*Hygienic preparation - washing and grooming the body to improve the appearance of the corpse (an alternative to embalming);
package - placing the corpse in a plastic bag; inspection - the possibility of examining the body, touching it and having relatives stay near it before the burial procedure; embalming - the introduction of chemicals that slow down the decomposition process of a corpse. Cosmetic preparation of the body of the deceased may be performed to improve the appearance of the corpse.

Most people rarely encounter the bodies of the dead, but in some life situations, in particular during funeral rituals, they have to deal with the corpses of relatives or friends. Other people, due to their work, have to constantly come into contact with corpses, exposing themselves to the risk of infection. These include physicians (especially pathologists), nurses, funeral directors, forensic pathologists, embalmers, funeral directors, clergy, emergency and emergency medical services personnel, and others regularly involved in preparing bodies for burial and conducting funeral events.

MEASURES TO REDUCE THE RISK OF INFECTION
Sectional events
Sectional events should be planned in such a way as to minimize the risk of infection of medical personnel working in them. It is mandatory to have an adequate ventilation system, running water and good sewerage.
Staff must wash their hands after each procedure and before eating (or before smoking).
The premises should be treated daily with phenol-containing disinfectants.
Instruments must be processed in a washing and disinfection chamber, autoclaved or immersed in a phenol-containing disinfectant solution for 20 minutes. There are several reasons why phenol-containing disinfectants are preferred over preparations containing hypochlorites.
Hypochlorite is corrosive and can cause damage to metal surfaces and tools. When using hypochlorite, chlorine gas is released, so when treating large areas, the concentration of chlorine in the air may exceed permissible values.
In sections and rooms for embalming corpses, formaldehyde is often present. During the chemical reaction between hypochlorite and formaldehyde, a strong carcinogen is formed - bis (chloromethyl) ether.

All instruments used for embalming and preparing the body for burial should be washed in hot water with detergent and disinfected, preferably by boiling for a short time (5 minutes), or by immersion in a phenol-containing disinfectant solution for 20 minutes. To remove blood stains and splashes of any other body fluids, phenol-containing disinfectants should be used. To protect your hands from contact with blood or other body fluids, you must use disposable gloves. At the same time, latex gloves containing natural rubber, which can provide protection only for a short period - no more than 15 minutes, are categorically not recommended in thanatopractice. The most effective gloves for thanatopractice are nitrile gloves, widely used in European thanatoriums.
Always wash your hands thoroughly after finishing work.

Preparing corpses for burial
In many countries, especially those with hot climates, burial or other disposal procedures are carried out within 24 hours of death (for practical or religious reasons). In such situations, some pathogenic microorganisms may remain viable, so the wearing of appropriate protective clothing and/or good personal hygiene by those in contact with corpses is extremely important.
Embalming can be one of the ways to temporarily preserve a corpse by reducing the activity of microorganisms and slowing down decomposition processes. Embalming corpses after accidents or autopsies is a more complex procedure. Bodies may be severely damaged and pose a particularly high risk of infection due to the presence of damaged bones, bone fragments, or sharp objects such as needles accidentally left in the body. Cosmetic work on a damaged corpse is also dangerous.
In most cases, simple hygienic preparation of the corpse is sufficient, which, as a rule, is carried out by relatives of the deceased or church leaders. Typically this procedure involves washing the face and hands, dressing the corpse, combing the body's hair, and possibly trimming nails and shaving. Unless there is a high risk of infection, the use of gloves and normal protective clothing is an acceptable and effective safety measure.
In some cases where the cause of death is a highly contagious disease, such as Ebola or hepatitis B, even routine hygienic preparation of the corpse may not be safe. The list of such infections is given in Table 42.2.
Emergency personnel The main infectious hazard for emergency personnel is blood. The risk of infection can be significantly reduced by preventing contact with blood through the use of gloves, face and eye protection, and, if necessary, protective clothing.
Corpses that have undergone decomposition, and especially bodies that have been in water for a certain period of time, pose a lower infectious risk. In such cases, the most likely detection will be microorganisms of the corpse's own flora and bacteria living in the water or living in the environment. Appropriate protective clothing should be worn to protect personnel handling such cadaveric material. In all cases, the bodies of the deceased should be transported to the mortuary in waterproof plastic bags or temporary fiberglass coffins. All cadaveric fluids are dangerous for personnel - blood, urine, any discharge from a corpse. Burial of corpses
Each society has its own traditions for burying corpses. These traditions should be respected as much as possible, although in some situations, such as deaths from highly contagious infections such as Ebola, cremation is the only safe procedure.
Sometimes, during natural or man-made disasters, it is not possible to follow normal burial procedures. Under these circumstances, the disposal of human remains must be done in a manner that does not expose an already stressed population to additional risk. Ideally, bodies should be cremated, but if this procedure is not possible, burying the corpses at least one meter deep (out of the reach of scavengers and pests) may be an acceptable alternative. Religious and social practices should be observed whenever possible. Disposal sites should be selected to avoid the risk of contamination of water sources.
I believe that this excerpt from the “Guide to Infection Control in Hospitals” in a clear and accessible form opens the eyes of any practicing funeral director or thanatopractor to unsafe working conditions. Therefore, these excerpts can be considered postulates and guidelines for action, although in our ranks there are still many who believe that “maybe it will blow away” and do not think about what the microcosm of bacteria and viruses inhabiting a dead body may turn out to be. I believe that hygienic factors play no less important role in the decision - to say goodbye at a closed or open coffin - than ethical and family motives.

Sergey YAKUSHIN, licensed thanatopraxist of the British Institute of Embalmers, London, German Institute of Thanatopraxy, Frankfurt

According to Christian customs, the most important part of the funeral rite, a mandatory ritual that cannot be neglected, is saying goodbye to the person who has accepted death. Friends and relatives of the deceased want to look at his face for the last time, say goodbye to him, the coffin is covered with a lid already . However, such a farewell is not always possible.

Why are they buried in closed coffins?

Unfortunately, not every person leaves this world peacefully; the cause of death is not always a serious illness or old age. In our world, car accidents, natural disasters, and accidents happen for a variety of reasons. It happens that death is accompanied by serious damage to the human body. Even the most professional embalming cannot hide such damage.

If the body of the deceased is seriously damaged for one reason or another, his relatives have only two options: or a closed coffin. Many people do not accept cremation due to religious customs and beliefs, and consider this type of funeral ceremony to be barbaric. Therefore, they have only one option to solve the problem - holding a funeral ceremony in a closed coffin.

When a deceased person is buried in a closed coffin

So, in some cases, seeing the face of the deceased becomes impossible. Below are the most common reasons for conducting a funeral ceremony using a closed casket.

• the death of a person was the result of a natural disaster;
• the deceased died due to an air, railway, or car accident;
• a serious illness that caused death disfigured the face and body of the deceased;
• the body of the deceased person was not discovered immediately; the process of decomposition had already begun;
• a person died as a result of an epidemic, contracting a dangerous infection, his body poses a danger to other people;
• a person died as a result of hostilities;
• death caused by a natural disaster (fire, hurricane), etc.

All these situations have one thing in common - the body of the deceased is disfigured to such an extent that his relatives and friends prefer to preserve the memory of him as if he were alive.

Another possible reason for holding a ritual farewell ceremony with a closed coffin is national, cultural or , preventing family and friends of the deceased from seeing the dead body.