If someone dies at home and you're abroad...

[admylin]

This is abit of a difficult question and maybe a bit morbid. If a family member dies when you are abroad and you know you can't get back quickly (atleast it might take a few days to a week) does anyone know what would happen?

How long would a person be able to be 'kept'? This is about my gran who is very ill and I'm abroad but so will my parents be next week and they usually look after her although she is in hospital at the moment and she has insisted that they go. It's a long way and not so easy to just jump on a flight back. It seems morbid but I think they should make arrangements before they go just in case.

I think a person can be "kept" for quite a long time - think of victims of crime where the forensics/post mortems etc need to be done. At least a week - probably a lot more. I think your parents need to check their insurance will cover costs (I'm sure it will). I'm sorry about your Gran.

It wouldn't be a problem. The morgue at the hospital is basically a big chill cabinet (sorry if that's put too bluntly!) so can be kept for ages. Funeral directors too can often wait a week, or two or even three weeks for a funeral to happen if family members need to be gathered from far and wide, and this poses no problem in terms of storage of the body.

It can often take more than a week to organise a funeral even if everything is very straightforward. There has to be an available 'slot' at the church or crematorium and you might have to wait more than a week for one. Believe it or not, undertakers have busy periods! Apparently a lot of older people die in January/February. That's what the undertaker who did my grandad's funeral told us.

Thanks that all sounds reassuring now that I've read it in black and white. Was abit shocked when parents said they'd be going but then gran said she'd had a great life and she would be mad if they sat waiting at her bed side. She's going on 100 and sad as it sounds she's ready to go (as she says).

Just coming back to this, Hasseled said something about insurannce. Do you think their insurance would include getting back earlier for a death in the family? They'd be in Singapore (I think) so not a quick or cheap flight back.

The same situation arose with my folks - my Grandad died, whole family traumatised, Mum booked a weeks holiday for six months later, and lo, the week before the holiday, my Gran died after a slow lingering decline.

Much as she didn't want to, on the ground of "What will people think", we convinced my Mum to take her break, it had no impact on Gran at that stage, and it gave everyone else a bit more time to make arrangements to be there for the funeral.

On a practical note, as has already been said, storage of the body shouldn't be an issue - think of all those cases where bodies are not released for legal/criminal reasons. Perhaps a call to a funeral director would be in order, to check on practicalities and charges, etc.

They need to check the wording on their travel insurance, but lots of policies will cover an immediate flight back in case of the death of a close relative.

It might be worth them speaking to the hospital about the situation, and asking whether there is anything they can do up-front about arrangements to make things simpler if it should happen while they're away. It may be simpler for the hospital if they can set something up before they go, but I don't know what's possible. I'm sure the hospital staff won't think they're morbid if they ask about this kind of situation, it must happen failry often.