In the humble midwestern town of Omaha, Nebraska, what began as an ordinary Monday morning in Butherus Maser & Love Funeral Home swiftly unravelled into an extraordinary occurrence that has left the local community reeling. A 74-year-old woman, assigned to the care of the Mulberry Nursing Home in the neighboring city of Waverly, showed a reassertion of life only two hours after being ascertained dead at her nursing home.
A daunting silence overcame the funeral home when the stoic procession of workers, tasked with laying the presumed deceased woman on the embalming table, noticed the unmistakable signs of life – a faint breath. Chief Deputy Ben Houchin revealed that the discovery was followed by a swift surge into action, with lifesaving cardiopulmonary resuscitation being performed on the woman before she was urgently transported to a Lincoln hospital. Regrettably, her reclaimed life was an ephemeral victory; the lady departed from the mortal sphere a few hours later in the hospital.
While the frequency of such astounding incidents remains a mystery, records reflect two prior incidents in New York and Iowa over the last year and a half. The baffling case of the woman mistaken for deceased is now scrutinized by the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office, and yet, Chief Deputy Houchin conceded there’s no initial evidence of legal ambiguity. Despite this incredulous spectacle, he acknowledged the local nursing homes, including the Mulberry nursing home where the woman was being cared for, seldom involve the sheriff’s department in the death of their hospice patients.
In the days leading up to her falsely declared demise, the 74-year-old woman had seen her doctor, who concurred with the prevailing belief of her impending departure due to the severe nature of her illness. Nonetheless, the certification of her death remained unsigned at the time of her unexpected revival.
A somber hush hangs over the situation, and as Chief Deputy Houchin suggests, this startling series of events will almost certainly fuel introspective investigation into the existing protocols, potentially instigating shifts in practices.
In a heartbreaking echo from the past, memories freshen of a woman in New York who was prematurely declared deceased just days after a similar incident in Iowa led to a steep $10,000 fine imposed on a nursing home.
Lending expert insight, Jessica Koth, spokeswoman for the National Funeral Directors Association, expressed her shock, asserting that until these recent occurrences, she hadn’t known of similar instances in her nearly twenty years of experience. As she explains, funeral directors traditionally entrust medical professionals to guide them, hence making a policy for such unforeseen circumstances redundant.
As the town continues to process this bewildering occurrence, Koth reflects softly on the family’s plight – a harrowingly turbulent emotional journey that shadows their every move.
