How was a woman almost buried alive in a coffin in Ecuador?

The woman had been in the coffin for five hours

A woman was found to still be breathing while lying in a coffin after being pronounced dead by a hospital in Ecuador.

Relatives of Bella Montoya, 76, were told she had died by doctors at the Martín Icaza hospital in the Ecuadorean city of Babahoyo after suffering a stroke.

She was taken to a funeral home and placed in a coffin, where relatives kept vigil for five hours. However, when they opened the coffin to change her clothes in preparation for her funeral, they realised she was still breathing.

Emergency services arrived and she was quickly taken back to hospital, where she remains in intensive care.

Her son, Gilbert Balberán, told Ecuadorean newspaper El Universo he had been given a death certificate for his mother when her body was released by the hospital, which stated she had died of cardiopulmonary arrest after suffering a stroke.

“My mother was all that time with the box covered,” he said. “When we took the coffin to the house where the wake was to be held, I heard a noise from inside the coffin, and when I opened it I saw my mother moving her hand, open her eyes, her mouth – she made an effort to breathe.”

“Little by little I am assimilating what has happened. Now I only ask that my mother's health improve. I want her alive and by my side.”

Relatives of Bella Montoya, 76, were told she had died by doctors

Mr Balberán said his mother was in a serious condition in hospital, but was showing signs of consciousness.

He said: “My mother is on oxygen. Her heart is stable. The doctor pinched her hand and she reacted. They tell me that this is good, because it means that she is reacting little by little.”

Mr Balberán had taken his mother to hospital around 9am on Friday morning, when her condition deteriorated. He was told by medical staff she had passed away at noon.

Her body remained inside a coffin from 2pm until after 6:30pm, when the family opened the box to prepare her for the wake.

Video taken by one of the mourners shows Ms Montoya lying in an open coffin clearly struggling to breathe, while another complains that an ambulance they called has not yet arrived.

Ecuador's health ministry has set up a committee to investigate the incident. It has been reported Ms Montoya’s relatives may consider taking legal action over the incident.

Last year, a woman in Peru reportedly banged on the roof of her coffin as it was being carried by relatives at her funeral. Rosa Isabel Cespede Callaca, who had been badly injured in a car accident, was found to be still breathing when the casket was opened and was taken to hospital and placed on a life support machine. However, she died a few hours later.

Meanwhile, also last year, a three-year-old girl in Mexico had two funerals and two death certificates, after her family discovered during the first ceremony their daughter was still alive. However, she could not be resuscitated and later died.