An 88 years old woman in Pilsen, Czech Republic almost got buried as she was presumed to be dead, when she was very much alive. The unfortunate incident happened in the morning when her partner could not get a response from her and feared that she had passed away.
He naturally called the emergency services and after they reached there, a coroner soon declared that the woman was dead. However, funeral workers who were working on her body reportedly realized that she was alive.
While there are varying reports on whether it was the funeral workers who pointed out her not being dead or if it was the woman herself who opened her eyes midway, the crux of the matter remains the fact that the corner had mistakenly declared her to be dead. Once it was clear that she was very much alive, the woman was taken to the hospital and as per local media, she was doing just fine there.
An investigation has been launched by the local police regarding this massive lapse on the part of the coroner. The company that the coroner belongs to also mentioned that they would make sure that necessary actions are taken.
Talking about what happened, Martin Štěpán, the the spokesperson of the ambulance that carried the woman said, “’Our operations centre received a call in the early morning hours, during which the operator proceeded in accordance with the valid recommendations of the professional society and the methodology for situations related to the death of a patient. Following this procedure, the entire incident was handed over to the coroner.”
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He then mentioned that after the funeral workers noticed that she was breathing, they stopped working on the body and the “operations centre immediately dispatched emergency medical services to the scene.” Štěpán further added, “The woman’s basic life functions were ensured on site and she was subsequently transported to a medical facility.”
Michaela Raindlová , the police spokesperson also talked about the incident, and said that “they were dealing with the reported death of an elderly woman, but it was subsequently discovered that she was alive.” Raindlová further added, “We are examining the circumstances of the case. The legal qualification has not yet been determined.”
While this remains a shocking incident on its own, instances of people being buried alive have occurred in the past as well. For instance, in 2022, 30 years old Víctor Hugo Mica Alvarez was buried alive as a ‘sacrifice to mother earth’ and made his way out of the coffin by smashing it.
He was at the Mother Earth Festival in El Alto, Bolivia and passed out drinking. Upon waking up, he found that he was in a casket in Achacachi, which was 50 miles away from the place he was at. The Mother Earth Festival is famed for people offering their gratitude to Pachamama, the goddess of earth and fertility where they give offerings or ‘sullu’.
While many kinds of offerings are given, some say that the ancient tradition of sacrificing humans also goes on in secret. The same happened with Víctor Hugo Mica Alvarez who told his experience to Bolivian news outlet Página Siete and said, “Last night was the pre-entry [of the festival], we went dancing. And afterwards I don’t remember. The only thing I remember is that I thought I was in my bed, I wanted to get up to go urinate and I couldn’t move.”
He then added, “When I pushed the coffin, I was able to break a glass that it had and that way I was able to get out. They wanted to use me as a sullu.”
While the two incidents are unrelated, they both show the horrors that living people face when they are buried thinking they are dead or wanting to give them up as sacrifices.
