INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE PMR Post Mortem Restituo Sweden AB, Malmoe, Sweden Arlington Memorial Chapels & Crematory, Quezon City, Philippines OGR international members share how COVID-19 is playing out in their countries and cities Nelson Bros. Funeral Services – Melbourne, Australia In Melbourne, we have experienced one of the longest and strictest lockdowns in the world, including a nightly curfew (8 p.m. - 5 a.m.) and 5km (3-mile) limit on travel since the start of July. Workers in essential industries (including funeral directors) require permits to be out of their homes. Since the start of this year, the entire country has only recently reached 25,000 cases and 800 deaths. Compared with other nations, we have had low case numbers but conversely very major restrictions, mainly by our state government. Funeral numbers have been limited to 10 for most of this period and we have been unable to collect families in our Rolls Royce fleet to 16 www.ogr.org | Fall 2020 Palau Funeral Home & Chapel, Koror, Palau Nelson Bros. Funeral Services, Melbourne, Australia bring them to the service, nor have we been able to provide catering and refreshments, typically a significant part of our business. Our team has balanced challenges on the home front, including having partners and families lose jobs in other industries, home schooling children, not being able to visit elderly relatives, waiting for elective surgery to be permitted and all the mental health surrounding these issues. Our team has also adapted quickly to technology changes, especially the spike in webcasting and livestreaming of funerals. Our website numbers are through the roof, including posts on our tribute walls. All of this is during a time when the overall death rate has fallen, but the regulations and requirements to
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