Residents of Chinese province where virus originated think government is not being honest about number of dead

Washington Examiner:

Some residents in Wuhan, China, believe the region's death toll is likely at least 20 times higher than numbers reported by the government.

"It can't be right," a Wuhan resident told Radio Free Asia on Friday. "The incinerators have been working round the clock, so how can so few people have died?"

He added, "They started distributing ashes and starting interment ceremonies on Monday."

Officially, there have been around 3,000 deaths in the Hubei province where Wuhan is located, but residents think the total is more likely 42,000-47,000.

They have estimated that the seven funeral homes in the Wuhan area are giving out 3,500 urns each day. Another calculation estimated the capacity for each funeral home in cremating people. Both estimates have led them to conclude that likely over 40,000 people have died in the area.

"Maybe the authorities are gradually releasing the real figures, intentionally or unintentionally, so that people will gradually come to accept the reality," a resident in the area named Mao said, adding that most people in Wuhan believe the 40,000 death toll number.

Another source said there are people who have died in their houses, but they were never treated for the coronavirus.
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The same government which was slow in acknowledging the virus appears to be reluctant to be honest about the number of victims.