AIBU to expect the shop to close ?

There's something not quite right when normal activity just carries on around a dead person, screened or not.

Those who can't feel that worry me.

My brother in law had someone die in his taxi cab and called an ambulance, not knowing what else to do, and they could not take the deceased - it's over to undertakers at that point.

Did you know there is a register of 'emergency' undertakers - someone I know is an undertaker and he was called out from the NOrth West when the Herald of Free Enterprise sank off Zeebruge all those years ago.

Gosh, izzywizzy, I am not surprised you are upset. What a sad sad thing.

And yes, I do think the store should have shut for a short while, out of respect for the man and his family. A small screen like that is not acceptable. If they couldn't provide a full sized screen, at the very least, then the store should have been closed.

Surely a person's dignity is more important than a couple of hours' profit. How disrespectful.

They should have closed the aisle. Out of simple respect.

I agree with you Jalima, the poor chap will indeed have a post mortem to determine the cause of death. I am still absolutely gobsmacked to read that he was left in the store, and even more so that the store continued to trade !!!!!!!
Appalling behaviour.

I was at a hotel in Bath and got out of the lift in the foyer, chap in evening suit lying on a stretcher at reception who was clearly dead. The paramedics were not going to take him and he lay there for some considerable time until FD arrived. Apparently sudden deaths are fairly common in hotels.

I agree with other, if the gentleman couldn't be moved, the screening should have been much better.

I still don't understand why the man in the shop couldn't have been moved to a side room, or to a less central area if apparently there doesn't need to be a doctor to confirm death.

I worked in a department store back in the days of the IRA bombings. As the store was very close to the Army Recruitment Office we often got false calls giving bomb warnings and had to evacuate the store within five minutes. We were always amazed about the amount if people who argued about having to leave. Especially those in the coffee shop who wanted to stay and finish their meal.

No-one is allowed to move a dead person in the circumstances described, ana, until the police have been and established it was not caused unlawfully. Important evidence might be destroyed.

But I thought the authorities had all been and they were just waiting for the Undertakers...

I don't think they could just cart him around willy-nilly. And they might not want to.

Anyway, that's me done on this thread!

Shop staff won't be allowed to move a body anyway. They are not trained to do that and might cause themselves an injury.

Last year our local ambulance service was reprimanded for leaving a dead man overnight on the floor of the garage as their shift was coming to an end. Not much respect for the dead there.

AIBU to expect the shop to close? Certainly not. There should be a procedure in place whereby the shop is immediately shut as a mark of respect and to give the deceased man some dignity. If I had witnessed the events as you did I'd write to head of the store and tell 'em so.

Such an upsetting thing for everyone, Paramedics cannot pronounce anyone dead,I think the store could have diverted the shoppers so they didnt have to pass by this incident, while waiting for the undertakers. The whole thing seems so bizarre.
Izzywizzy I hope you feel much better now, a big hug x

I find this whole episode appalling. The store should have been shut immediately. The man should have been taken to hospital where he would have been pronounced dead, and under no circumstances should the paramedics have left him. It's almost like a scene from a TV programme.

What does AIBU mean? I feel awful for the poor man, surely he should have been moved by ambulance by then. Why didn't they close the store temporarily and as for the screen, cardboard boxes? Disgusting.

AIBU is short for Am I Being Unreasonable
You will find the other acronyms if you click the green box on the far right above the thread title (desktop version)

This happened at M and S recently and they closed the whole aisle which was relatively private

The shop should have closed right there. For no other reason than the dignity of the deaceased. All customers should have been requested to leave.
My objection is the stores total lack of respect for the deceased.

I wonder which store did not want to lose any takings for an hour or so despite a death in the store.
As others have said, the police as well as a doctor have to be involved when there is a sudden death.

I would not personally be upset by the idea of the body being there, just probably feel sorry for his friends and relatives.

Since sitting with my Mil who died a couple of hours before we arrived, after a dash from up north, I have felt very different about death. We sat with my lovely Mil holding her hand and talking about her until the undertaker arrived. It was not scary and felt very comfortable.

If there is an unexplained death anywhere in the UK and let`s face it collapsing in a supermarket and dying IS an unexpected death, then the Police must be called and stay with the body until someone from the Police Mortuary takes away the body for examination. Otherwise if this deceased person had been poisoned or had been involved perhaps in a RTA prior to his visit to the supermarket, the person(s) brought in for possible questioning in respect of the `poisoning` or `RTA` could simply say the Police had not followed the Legal protocols leaving no case to answer.

Well, that doesn't appear to be what happened in this case!

When my two children were 5 and 8 I saw a demonstration at the front of the ASDA. Paramedics were giving a demo of resuscitation of two people. I thought it was a good idea that the children saw this and we stood watching with me giving them an explanation at every step. Some man then started shouting at me and calling me insensitive etc. To my horror and realisation it was real! We went out quickly and security told me a man collapsed and then his wife also collapsed in shock. I cried all the way home. My poor kids were oblivious thankfully.

Yes they should have closed the store in your instance.