"Wedding Without Groom, Crematoriums Overcrowded"…Unusual Scenes of Ceremonies in the COVID Era

As of 0:00 on the 21st, 209,169 New COVID-19 Cases... 329 Deaths
Groom Diagnosed with COVID-19 Attends Wedding via Video Call
Crematorium Demand Surges as COVID-19 Deaths Increase

A story has been shared about a groom who tested positive for COVID-19 and attended the wedding ceremony via video call. Photo by Online Community Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] As the Omicron variant of the virus spreads and the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases surpasses 9 million, the way traditional ceremonies such as weddings and funerals are conducted has changed significantly. Unique scenes of the COVID-19 era are emerging, such as brides attending weddings alone without the groom who tested positive for COVID-19, and crematories becoming overwhelmed due to a surge in deaths.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, as of midnight on the 21st, 209,169 new COVID-19 cases were reported, bringing the cumulative total to 9,582,815. This is a sharp decrease of 125,539 cases compared to the previous day (334,708 cases). Although new cases have decreased, the number of deaths continues to rise. As of midnight on the same day, 329 deaths were reported, marking the second highest daily death toll since the 429 deaths recorded on the 17th.

In this situation, a story was shared about a wedding where the groom tested positive for COVID-19 just before the ceremony, and only the bride attended the wedding. On the 19th, a post titled "Wedding in the COVID-19 Era" was uploaded on an online community, sharing this story.

Since it was difficult to reschedule the wedding after the groom tested positive for COVID-19 right before the ceremony, a creative method was chosen where the groom attended the wedding virtually via a screen. The photo shared with the post showed the bride standing alone on the wedding stage in a white dress without the groom.

Previously, the difficulties faced by couples who had to hold weddings amid the spread of COVID-19 have been reported. Due to government social distancing guidelines, the number of guests had to be adjusted, and conflicts arose over cancellation fees with wedding service providers.

In particular, newlyweds protested against what they considered unreasonable restrictions on the number of guests. The National Newlywed Association criticized the government's social distancing guidelines as "desk-bound administration" in August last year and demanded the withdrawal of these guidelines.

They pointed out that while wedding halls with larger areas can accommodate more guests with sufficient distancing, the government uniformly limited the number of guests to 49 or 99 without considering the size of the venue, which they argued was unfair.

Disputes between newlyweds and wedding halls were also a source of dissatisfaction. Although the government limited the number of guests, the minimum guaranteed number of attendees required by each wedding hall ranged from 200 to 300, meaning newlyweds had to bear the cost for the remaining number of guests. The Newlywed Association stated, "The Fair Trade Commission mediates disputes between couples and wedding halls, but its recommendations are ineffective. Prospective newlyweds suffer losses amounting to hundreds of thousands to millions of won for the wedding fees. Even if they try to postpone or cancel the wedding, cancellation fees exceeding hundreds of thousands of won are incurred."

On the afternoon of the 17th, as the number of deaths from COVID-19 and seasonal change-related deaths rapidly increased, the demand for cremation also surged. The cremation status is displayed on a monitor at a crematorium in Gyeonggi-do. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, as the number of COVID-19 cases rises sharply, the number of deaths has also surged, causing crematories to become overwhelmed. Some bereaved families have no choice but to extend funeral periods to 7 or 8 days.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 17th that while the two cremation facilities, Seunghwawon and Seoul Memorial Park, usually perform an average of 135 cremations per day, they have recently increased this number to 191.

This increase is due to the combined effects of COVID-19 and seasonal factors such as the change of seasons, which have led to a rise in deaths. Over the past two years, the average daily number of deaths in Seoul during January and February was 133, but this year it rose to 154, an increase of 15.8%. Additionally, among the 9,095 total deaths in Seoul during January and February, 619 were COVID-19 related, accounting for 6.8% of all deaths.

In response, Seoul, which has been operating under an emergency system since the 16th, plans to increase the average daily operation of cremators from the current 191 to a maximum of 204.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.