- A 76-year-old woman was declared dead in Ecuador last week, The Associated Press reported.
- But five hours into her wake, relatives noticed there were sounds coming from the coffin, AP said.
A remarkable video shows an Ecuadorean woman found alive inside her coffin after she knocked on it during her wake, hours after she had been declared dead.
Retired nurse Bella Montoya, 76, was thought to have died at Martín Icaza Hospital in Babahoyo, Ecuador last week after suffering a possible stroke and cardiac arrest, The Associated Press reported.
Five hours into her wake on Friday, relatives noticed how the coffin "started to make sounds," her son, Gilberto Barbera, told AP.
"My mom was wrapped in sheets and hitting the coffin, and when we approached we could see that she was breathing heavily," he said. "It gave us all a fright."
A video published on AP shows relatives attending to Montoya as she lays on her side and struggles to breathe.
Montoya was quickly rushed to hospital, and at the time of writing, is under intubation and still in serious condition, reports claim.
"My mum is on oxygen, her heart is stable. The doctor pinched her hand and she reacted, they tell me that's good because it means she is reacting little by little," Barbera told local media, according to the BBC.
Ecuador's Health Ministry said it will launch a government investigation into the hospital to find out how it issues death certificates, AP reported. No details have been released about the doctor who declared her dead.