DAVAO CITY — The expenses incurred in the burial of the late priest Fr. Arnel Celis was shouldered by the Archdiocese of Tagum, said Mayor Allan Rellon to Newsline on Monday, May 4.
Fr. Celis died on April 27 at around 7:00 in the evening and a swab was taken right after he expired. The result from the Southern Philippine Medical Center (SPMC) was released on April 29, the day after his burial, which stated that he was found positive to have infected by the virus.
The health authorities and the city government of Tagum have implemented measures in line with health protocol relative to the burial of a suspected coronavirus patient, a reason they adopted the same protocol in the burial of the priest given that the result of the swab test has yet to be released.
The first swab test that was taken from Fr. Celis turned negative but his body deteriorated fast, a thing which alarmed health authorities, “We were cautious right after his confinement despite negative results,” Rellon added.
Rellon in an interview with Newsline said under the guideline of the Inter-Agency Task Force Covid-19, the Local Government Unit (LGU) shoulders the burial expense of any covid-19 casualty “But in the case of Fr. Celis, the Archdiocese shouldered all the expenses which cost was over P100,000 since the steel casket is expensive.”
Fr. Celis was buried in Tagum City almost midnight of April 28 because there was no way he can be transported to Davao City for cremation as the schedule was too tight and funeral homes with crematorium can no longer accommodate his cadaver, said Rellon.
Based on the protocol, the diseased must be cremated or buried within 24hours. “From his death bed in Davao Regional Medical Center (DRMC) he was transported to his ten-feet graveyard inside a steel casket,” Rellon revealed.
Fr. Celis is the first clergy to die of coronavirus in the country.-Editha Z. Caduaya
