‘Dead’ woman found breathing in coffin

The wake of an elderly Ecuadorean woman took an unexpected turn when mourners discovered that she was still alive. Bella Montoya, 76, had been declared dead by a hospital doctor after a suspected stroke. She was placed in a coffin and taken to a funeral parlor, where her relatives held a vigil in preparation for her burial.

However, after nearly five hours, when the family opened the coffin to change her clothes before the funeral, Bella Montoya gasped for air. Her son, Gilbert Balberán, described the shocking moment when they realized she was still alive. Video footage captured her struggling to breathe in the open casket, while the family expressed frustration that the ambulance they had called had not yet arrived.

Firefighters eventually arrived and transferred Bella Montoya onto a stretcher before taking her back to the same hospital where she had been declared dead. According to her son, she was responsive and in intensive care, with stable heart function. He mentioned that the doctor pinched her hand and she reacted, which was considered a positive sign of her gradual recovery.

Ecuador’s health ministry has initiated an investigation into the incident. Mr. Balberán revealed that he had taken his mother to the hospital in the morning, and at noon, a doctor informed him of her supposed death. He had even received a death certificate stating that she had died from cardiopulmonary arrest after suffering a stroke.

Bella Montoya’s case is not unique, as similar instances have occurred where individuals were declared dead only to be discovered alive later on. In February, an 82-year-old woman in New York state was found to be breathing at a funeral home, three hours after being pronounced dead at a nursing home.

–The Post Ghana