Metal structures of furnaces at some crematoriums in Surat have started melting or breaking as they are being used round-the-clock because of the rush of bodies amid the Covid-19 pandemic, officials said on Tuesday.

For the past week, around 16 gas-based furnaces at the Kurukshetra Crematorium and Ashvini Kumar Crematorium here in Gujarat are operating 24x7, they said.

“Before the coronavirus outbreak last year, around 20 bodies were cremated at the Kurukshetra Crematorium every day. Now, there is a sudden rush of bodies. At present, we are handling about 100 bodies per day,” Kamlesh Sailor, president of a trust that manages the crematorium, said.

Sailor said six gas furnaces at their facility are now being operated 24 hours. As a result, the iron frames and chimneys have started melting and breaking, he said. Mechanics are being called to replace those parts.

The Ashvini Kumar Crematorium, the oldest in Surat, has decided to increase the number of traditional wood pyres to manage the rush.

“We operate 10 gas furnaces and three wood pyres. Earlier, we used to cremate about 30 bodies every day. Now, the number has gone up to 90-95,” manager Prashant Kabrawala said.

“We recently installed heat-resistant bricks in two of our furnaces, which were shut for some time. Our maintenance engineers are visiting the crematorium almost daily as we are facing these issues every day,” he said.

Kabrawala said they have decided to add two more wood pyres in the wake of these frequent maintenance issues.