Dead body freezer box which is also commonly called a dead body box, Mortuary box and dead body ice box is a freezer box that is used to preserve the dead body from decomposition for a few hours. The box will have a cabinet to place the human corpse and will have a mechanism to keep the cabinet at a lower temperature.
Once a person is dead, the body of the diseased person has to be preserved for various reasons like autopsy, identification or respectful burial or cremation. The body can be preserved in different ways like embalming, Mummification, and freezing. Usually, dead bodies are preserved in Morgue in Mortuary room when a body id under control of hospitals or police for legal clearance. However the family wants the body to be properly preserved even after the body is officially handover by the hospital for respectful cremation or funeral of a diseased person, these are where a portable dead body freezer box comes in rescue for the family.
Dead body freezer box is usually portable or fitted to Mortuary van. This freezer box is custom-built for this purpose. Usually, the outer body of a dead body freezer box is built by stainless steel or glass to avoid contamination or reaction with the diseased body. Majority of the dead body ice box have lower bottom stainless steel and upper body glass such that it could be used for display purpose also. The dead body freezer box is electrically powered to keep the internal cabinet at a lower temperature.
The dead body freezer box will typically weigh 80 to 100 Kg, and usually, the size of the mortuary box will be 7*4*3 ( length* breadth* height) and sometimes the size will be custom build as per the requirement. The freezing temperature range of the majority of dead body freezer box will be in the range of 0 to 8 degree Celsius. There is also a mortuary box which has a temperature range of -2 to -30 degree Celsius but usually used by the forensic department when a body needs longer preservation for autopsy or other legal requirements, which could preserve the body for months.
Dead body freezer box will not stop the dead body from decomposing, but it slows down the process of decomposition due to a lower temperature. Commercially available dead body freezer box will usually avoid decomposing for 24 hours to 48 hours depending upon the freezing temperature and the materials used.
The family of the deceased wants the body to be preserved even after the body is handed over by the hospital and this is when dead body freezer box rentals come to the rescue. These freezer boxes are either portable or fitted to mortuary vans.