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Coronavirus pandemic
This Week in AsiaHealth & Environment

Coronavirus: Indonesians in Sumatra mourn loved ones amid fears of new hotspots

  • The second most populous island is recording a rise in cases, which may have been caused by people travelling home for the Eid ul-Fitr holiday
  • In Medan, North Sumatra, the sole Covid-19 cemetery is getting so large, mourners struggle to find the final resting spot of their relatives

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A relative mourns at the Medan Covid-19 cemetery. Photo: EPA-EFE
Aisyah Llewellyn
As Indonesia continues to bury its Covid-19 dead, the families behind the official statistics have been left to count the costs amid concerns of a rise in cases outside the usual hotspots on the island of Java.
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Indonesia’s most populous island has borne the brunt of the pandemic, and the archipelago as a whole has recorded over 1.8 million cases and more than 50,000 deaths since the start of the outbreak.

But on May 13, Wiku Adisasmito, the spokesperson of the Covid-19 Task Force, said infections in Java had fallen by 11 per cent, while the country’s second most populous island of Sumatra had recorded a 27 per cent increase in cases.

“In February and March this year, no provinces in Sumatra were among the top 10 largest contributors to Covid-19 cases nationwide. But in May, five provinces in Sumatra were on the list,” he said, adding that coronavirus-related deaths also rose by 17 per cent across Sumatra.

Simalingkar B Cemetery is the official Covid-19 cemetery in the city of Medan, North Sumatra. Photo: Aisyah Llewellyn
Simalingkar B Cemetery is the official Covid-19 cemetery in the city of Medan, North Sumatra. Photo: Aisyah Llewellyn

Abdi, 36, a gardener at the only designated Covid-19 cemetery in Medan, North Sumatra, said the number of bodies buried had tripled over the past few months.

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About six people are buried each day now, he said, compared to just one or two a few months ago.

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