Shipments of urns in Wuhan raise questions about China’s coronavirus reporting

Massive deliveries of urns in Wuhan have raised fresh skepticism of China’s coronavirus reporting.

As families in the central Chinese city began picking up the cremated ashes of those who have died from the virus this week, photos began circulating on social media and local media outlets showing vast numbers of urns at Wuhan funeral homes.

China has reported 3,299 coronavirus-related deaths, with most taking place in Wuhan, the epicenter of the global pandemic. But one funeral home received two shipments of 5,000 urns over the course of two days, according to the Chinese media outlet Caixin.

It’s not clear how many of the urns were filled.

Workers at several funeral parlors declined to provide any details to Bloomberg as to how many urns were waiting to be collected, saying they either did not know or were not authorized to share the number.

The photos surfaced after both the United States and Italy have reported significantly more cases and than China. Italy has reported just shy of three times the fatalities.

China has moved to lift the two-month lockdown on Wuhan after officials predicted a forthcoming “victory” against the virus earlier in the month.

President Trump on Friday said he spoke with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping and that he hoped the two countries will share information about the virus to better combat its spread in the US.

“China has been through much & has developed a strong understanding of the Virus. We are working closely together. Much respect!” Trump tweeted Friday.