It was a scene that shocked and terrified the mourners who had gathered to pay their last respects to Bella Montoya, a 76-year-old retired nurse from Ecuador.
Montoya, who had been declared dead by doctors after suffering a stroke and a cardiac arrest, suddenly woke up inside her coffin and started knocking on it during her wake on June 9, 2023.
Montoya’s family had previously gathered for a wake at a funeral home on June 9, just hours after she was declared dead by doctors the first time. However, everything came to a stop when they heard a sound coming from inside the coffin.
Her son, Gilberto Barbera, told the Associated Press that the sound gave everyone a “fright” and that they immediately rushed her back to the hospital.
However, despite being under intensive care for a week, Montoya could not survive and passed away on June 18, 2023.
According to Ecuador’s health ministry, Montoya died from an ischemic stroke, which occurs when a blood vessel supplying blood to the brain is blocked. The ministry also said that it was investigating the case and reviewing how the hospital issues death certificates.
Barbera said he did not receive any explanation from the hospital as to what happened and that his mother’s sister had filed a formal complaint about the incident. He said he wanted to find out who was the doctor who had declared his mother dead the first time.
Montoya’s remains were sent back to the same funeral home where she had previously regained consciousness, and her son said she would be buried at a public cemetery.
This is not the first time that a person has been mistakenly pronounced dead and revived later. In 2019, a woman in South Africa was found alive inside a morgue fridge after being declared dead by paramedics following a car accident.
In 2018, a man in Spain woke up on an autopsy table after being declared dead by three doctors following a drug overdose.
These cases raise questions about the criteria and methods used to determine death and the ethical implications of such errors. They also highlight the importance of respecting the dignity and rights of the deceased and their families.
