Based on reports from early March 2026, the Management of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) has announced plans to conduct a mass burial for a large number of unclaimed corpses that have been in their mortuary for an extended period.
Reports indicate that approximately 462 corpses are currently unclaimed, consisting of adults, children, and infants, with roughly 350 of them being children.
The bodies have been in the hospital’s mortuary since January 2023 up until June 2025.
The hospital has given a six-week grace period (from early March 2026) for relatives and owners to come forward and claim the bodies.
Reasoning: The management stated that the morgue is over congested and can no longer accommodate the abandoned bodies.
The report further said If the bodies are not claimed within the stipulated six weeks, the hospital will proceed with a mass burial or dispose of them in a manner deemed appropriate.
This is a recurring issue for the hospital, with similar threats of mass burial issued in May 2024 for a smaller number of bodies.
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