Health Minister Dr. Perry Gomez admits that the city’s morgue needs to be reconstructed because it has been overcrowded for years.

“I know the morgue is always almost full for a long time even when I was in practice,” he told reporters Tuesday.

“So I am not surprised that the situation would be the same. There is no question to my mind that we need a new morgue for the country.”

Dr. Gomez said he has been told that the refrigeration system at the morgue is working well.

However, he admitted that some bodies are placed in refrigerated containers because of the lack of space in the morgue.

“It’s just crowded,” he said. “If the body needs a post-mortem that is done is a timely fashion. But there are also bodies that people don’t come to recover. There are also borders in the morgue.”

Dr. Gomez could not say how many bodies are held in containers at a time nor could he say for how long.

“The government would have to organise burials because sometimes bodies are there for years,” the minister said.

“[Morgue officials] are doing the best they can. They are very responsible people. But the final analysis is that we need a new facility.”