Darwin Castillo's father died in Guayaquil during the coronavirus pandemic that has caused the Ecuadoran city's health system to collapse.
But when Castillo went to the overwhelmed morgue to recover him, he opened a body bag to find the person inside wasn't his father.
Two weeks have passed and he still hasn't found the body.
Guayaquil, Ecuador's largest city, is the capital of Guayas province has recorded roughly 70 per cent of the country's more than 8,200 coronavirus cases.
Castillo, 31, who works in a factory making plastic products, ended up returning the coffin he had purchased to the funeral home.
"I don't blame the hospital or the morgue. There were people dying at the entrance," he said.
"I would like my dad to appear so I can give him a Christian burial, to give a bouquet of roses to my old man."
Castillo's father, Manuel, was 76 and a dialysis patient, who died on March 31 due to a catheter obstruction.
His son went to the Los Ceibos hospital - the largest in Guayaquil, which has been dedicated to coronavirus cases - two days later to recover the body.
When he got to the morgue he found it filled with corpses and paid an employee a $150 bribe to recover his father's body among some 170 that were piled up.
Among the abundance of death, authorities installed a refrigerated truck outside the morgue to hold 46 bodies.
When Castillo opened the body bag with the wrong person inside, he was surprised to find "a man with a mustache and different clothes."
"The gentleman had the wristband they give you when you enter the hospital and it said Rodriguez," Castillo added.
So the morgue suggested he search among the bodies, including Covid-19 victims.
"If there hadn't have been this problem, I would have searched from dead to dead for my dad, but I would have been exposing myself" to the virus, he said. So he refused.
The chaos in hospitals and funeral parlours - in addition to the government lockdown - means many bodies remain in homes for days before being collected.
The government, which over the last few days has collected 1,400 bodies from homes and hospitals in Guayaquil, uses a website to notify individuals of corpses' burial plots.
Two cemeteries have been expanded for the Covid-19 dead.
Although Castillo entered his father's details, his name didn't appear on the website.
Some people are blaming the government for the chaos.
"The family has the right to know where their dead relative is. The families are saying that the dead arrive with changed identities or men arrive when they're women," lawyer Hector Vanegas said.
Vanegas, who is representing a group of Guayaquil residents preparing a lawsuit against the government, is compiling a list of those affected by the confusion - and said he had already received 190 calls.
Moises Valle, a 37-year-old pharmaceutical employee, also lost his father, who died of a heart attack in Teodoro Maldonado Carbo hospital.
When Mr Valle filled out the forms to claim the body, he found it had been sent to another health care facility without his consent.
"This day an ordeal began because I couldn't claim the body. Until yesterday my father's name hadn't appeared on the website," Mr Valle said.
He had acquired a plot in the neighboring town of Duran and was prepared for the burial, but had to cancel the service.
Dayana, who chose not to give her last name out of fear of reprisal, works in a funeral home. The last days of March were stressful and traumatic.
"I came home dead (from tiredness), crying over everything I saw, rotting corpses, with worms," she said.
Every time she went to the hospitals, she would take four coffins, but it was never enough. She said she can still hear the cries for help.
"I need a psychologist, and I need one urgently given all the rubbish I've seen," she said.
The 29-year-old said many corpses were marked as unknown, adding in the morgues identification tags are changed and bodies released without the correct documentation.
It means for many people struggling with the pain of losing a loved one, they must also deal with the uncertainty of not knowing where the body is.
The specs
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Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
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Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction
Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.
Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.
Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.
Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.
Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.
What are the guidelines?
Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.
Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.
Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.
Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.
Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.
Source: American Paediatric Association
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
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Basquiat in Abu Dhabi
One of Basquiat’s paintings, the vibrant Cabra (1981–82), now hangs in Louvre Abu Dhabi temporarily, on loan from the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
The latter museum is not open physically, but has assembled a collection and puts together a series of events called Talking Art, such as this discussion, moderated by writer Chaedria LaBouvier.
It's something of a Basquiat season in Abu Dhabi at the moment. Last week, The Radiant Child, a documentary on Basquiat was shown at Manarat Al Saadiyat, and tonight (April 18) the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is throwing the re-creation of a party tonight, of the legendary Canal Zone party thrown in 1979, which epitomised the collaborative scene of the time. It was at Canal Zone that Basquiat met prominent members of the art world and moved from unknown graffiti artist into someone in the spotlight.
“We’ve invited local resident arists, we’ll have spray cans at the ready,” says curator Maisa Al Qassemi of the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
Guggenheim Abu Dhabi's Canal Zone Remix is at Manarat Al Saadiyat, Thursday April 18, from 8pm. Free entry to all. Basquiat's Cabra is on view at Louvre Abu Dhabi until October
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
Off-roading in the UAE: How to checklist
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Financial considerations before buying a property
Buyers should try to pay as much in cash as possible for a property, limiting the mortgage value to as little as they can afford. This means they not only pay less in interest but their monthly costs are also reduced. Ideally, the monthly mortgage payment should not exceed 20 per cent of the purchaser’s total household income, says Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching.
“If it’s a rental property, plan for the property to have periods when it does not have a tenant. Ensure you have enough cash set aside to pay the mortgage and other costs during these periods, ideally at least six months,” she says.
Also, shop around for the best mortgage interest rate. Understand the terms and conditions, especially what happens after any introductory periods, Ms Glynn adds.
Using a good mortgage broker is worth the investment to obtain the best rate available for a buyer’s needs and circumstances. A good mortgage broker will help the buyer understand the terms and conditions of the mortgage and make the purchasing process efficient and easier.
Business Insights
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