Video shows Italian army trucks transporting coffins from its worst-hit town to remote cremation sites because morgues can't cope with more coronavirus deaths

Corriere TV

A convoy of Italian army trucks in Bergamo, Italy, on Wednesday night.

• The Italian army is ferrying coffins from Bergamo, northern Italy, to remote cremation sites because local morgues can't cope with the surging coronavirus death toll.
• At least 93 people have died and 4,305 are infected from the coronavirus in Bergamo alone. It's Italy's worst-hit town, and the crematorium and several morgues are full to busting.
• Twelve towns in northern Italy, including Parma and Moderna, offered up use of their crematoriums after Bergamo's mayor called for aid.
• As of Wednesday night, 3,000 Italians have died and more than 35,000 have been infected. Bar China, Italy is the world's worst-hit country.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Italian army has started ferrying dozens of coffins from Bergamo, its worst-hit town in the country's coronavirus crisis, to remote cremation sites because local morgues can't cope with the number of new deaths.

A convoy of at least ten military trucks was filmed passing through the northern Italian town on Wednesday night.

They were transporting 61 bodies to cremation sites in 12 Italian towns, including Modena and Parma, national newspaper Corriere Della Sera reported.

Bergamo is Italy's worst hit town, with 93 deaths and 4,305 infections as of Wednesday, and the town's public services are in crisis.

Giorgio Gori, the mayor of Bergamo, wrote to neighboring towns for help with cremation, and said the ashes from the cremated bodies would be brought back to Bergamo, the local L'Ecio Di Bergamo reported.

Corriere TV

An Italian army truck leaves a crematorium in Bergamo on Wednesday night.

The town's crematorium, which has been operating 24/7, can only cremate 25 people a day, L'Ecio Di Bergamo added.

Funeral services in the town have also been overwhelmed, as Business Insider's Mia Jankowicz reported Tuesday.

There is a long waiting list for burials, and coffins were stacking up at two hospital morgues and a cemetery morgue.

Stefano Guidi/Getty Images

An Italian Army soldier stands guard in front of the Turin Synagogue during as Italy continues it nationwide lockdown to control the coronavirus pandemic.

A haunting video posted by the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero on Sunday showed coffins lined up in a Bergamo church.

Gori, Bergamo's mayor, said Wednesday that the number of coronavirus deaths in the town may be far higher than reported.

"There are significant numbers of people who have died but whose death hasn't been attributed to the coronavirus because they died at home or in a nursing home and so they weren't swabbed," he said, according to Reuters.

Mirco Nacoti, an anesthesiologist and intensive-care specialist, estimated to The Wall Street Journal Tuesday that 60% or more of Bergamo's population already has the coronavirus.

Italy has recorded the most coronavirus deaths and infections outside China, where the disease broke out. Nearly 3,000 people in the country have died, and more than 35,000 have been infected as of Thursday morning.

Italian journalist David Carretta on Monday tweeted a video of himself leafing through the obituary pages of L'Ecio Di Bergamo newspaper. The obituary section, which was 1 1/2 pages in February, spanned 10 pages on March 13.

Italy has the largest aging population in Europe. The elderly and those with preexisting health conditions are most at risk of death from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

• Read more:
• Italians share what they wish they'd done 10 days ago to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, from staying inside to listening to their mom's advice
• How Italy spiraled from a perfectly healthy country to near collapse in 24 days as the coronavirus took hold
• Medical workers at the frontlines of the coronavirus outbreak in Italy are working days on end as the disease continues to grip the country
• What to do if you think you might have the coronavirus: Call before going to a hospital. Here's the process for potential patients
• Everything we know about the coronavirus outbreak

A #Bergamo hanno dovuto chiamare l'esercito per caricare camion e camion di bare da destinare a crematori fuori regione. Prima di lamentarvi della proroga del #lockdown riguardatevi sto video in loop.#coronavirusitalia pic.twitter.com/ofR1raGVTb

- Alessandro Zanoni (@AlexZan87) March 19, 2020

Bergamo daily newspaper pic.twitter.com/N3ECABz8dr

- David Carretta (@davcarretta) March 14, 2020