Burning out is a drive-through Funeral changing with the new Corona June 22 18:46

"If I hadn't had the new Corona, I would have attended the funeral..." With the spread of the new coronavirus, I think that there are many people who have been confused about the risk of infection and whether to go to the last goodbye with an important person. Under these circumstances, new initiatives such as “Drive-through burning incense” and “Online funeral” have spread. This is a new form of funeral that started as a countermeasure against infectious diseases, but in rural areas where the birthrate is aging and the population is declining rapidly, people with disabilities and young people who have left their homes will also be able to easily attend. Is being started.
(Hiroe Sano, Aomori Broadcasting Station Mutsu branch reporter)

Burning incense from the car

Speaking of drive-through, fast-food restaurants in the suburbs were a staple, but the spread of the new coronavirus led to its widespread adoption at various locations. A funeral company in Aomori City started "Drive Through Yakiko" in April for attendants worried about infection. You can burn incense with a car at the entrance of the funeral hall and without opening the window.

When I had a simulated experience, it seemed hard to say that I had enough time to spare my farewell to the deceased, but "contact" was minimized to the extent that my finger touched the incense. I felt that I wasn't too worried about.

Goodbye online

The company has also begun efforts to broadcast the funeral process on its YouTube video posting site. It has been used 4 times since the announcement of the emergency situation for the new coronavirus countermeasures in early April, and it seems that the mourner had attended online from Saitama Prefecture.

I asked one of the users to talk to me. Atsushi Takahashi (61), who lives in Aomori City, used this service at his mother's funeral held in late May. This is so that the daughter family living in Chiba prefecture, who did not attend due to the risk of infection, could see it. A camera and a dedicated device were installed in a corner of the venue and the situation was delivered in real time.

Mr. Takahashi
"I think I really wanted my daughter to come crying. My mother loved her grandchildren, so I'm sure we'll be happy in heaven that we could have funerals in this way even when the new coronavirus infection spreads. I think I have been able to do it.

At a later date, I asked my daughter Takahashi what she thought of using the online funeral, "If this was not the case, I would have been to attend Aomori. When my grandmother died, my mother called me. I didn't really feel because I knew it, but when I saw the shadow of my grandmother through the screen, I realized that I really died."

Aiming to be a "chosen" funeral

The number of funeral attendants has fallen significantly across the country as the infection with the new coronavirus gradually expanded. If the number of attendees decreases and the funeral service becomes smaller, the funeral company's sales will decrease due to fewer flowers to be offered and fewer meals, which will inevitably affect management. The company currently offers "drive-through burning incense" and "online funeral" services at no additional charge. I want to aim for it.

President Funabashi
"I think funerals will change with the times. In that sense, this online funeral will become mainstream."

Conventional service also regained attention

In some cases, traditional services have regained attention. A funeral company located in Mutsu City, Aomori Prefecture, on the Shimokita Peninsula in the northernmost part of Honshu, has made some small improvements to the thank-you note that accompanies the return of incense.

At first glance, it looks like a normal thank-you note, but when you look inside, you can see the personality and episode of the deceased person in detail. It is said that the service has been provided for 10 years, but the number of inquiries has increased rapidly as the number of people who forgot to participate in funerals has increased due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection, and the number of applications has tripled from last year. It is said that It seems that more and more people are thinking, "I want people who could not attend the funeral to remember the deceased firmly."

In addition, this funeral company started in March.

Scan the QR code on the thank you note to play the message video. You can also share this video, email or SNS.

President Takaya
"The environment is becoming more accepting even in ways that cannot be bound up with what we have done until now. I want to be able to snuggle up to the feeling of having lost an important person."

Changing funeral

A new funeral service attracting attention due to the new coronavirus. Industry officials expect that it will spread significantly in regions where the population is declining and the birthrate is declining and the population is aging. An elderly person whose legs are weak and unable to visit a funeral home. A youth who has a job outside the prefecture and refuses to participate because he/she cannot respond to sudden obituaries. In addition, people who worried about heavy snow in winter and forgot to participate... This is because we can give that opportunity to those who have never wanted to attend.

As new lifestyles are being explored along with words such as "with corona" and "after corona", it is said that old customs and customs have been overturned and that the new form of funeral is being accepted. I witnessed it here in Aomori.

Aomori Broadcasting stations Mutsu bureau reporter
Sano HiroshiYoshie
2016 it joined
covering the primary industries and small and medium-sized enterprises of the Shimokita Peninsula in Honshu northernmost of the bureau