The bizarre case unfolded when the 82-year-old woman was pronounced dead at 11:15 a.m. Saturday at the Water’s Edge Rehab and Nursing Center in Port Jefferson.
But after being transported to the O.B. Davis Funeral Home in Miller Place, the woman was found to be breathing shortly after 2 p.m., police said.
Funeral home staffers made the shocking discovery and the octogenarian was then brought to an area hospital, Suffolk County police said. Her current condition is unknown.
It’s unclear if the woman was declared dead in error or if she experienced a medical episode that could have contributed to her apparent resurrection.
The case has been referred to the New York State Attorney’s Office.
The Long Island funeral home didn’t immediately return a message.
Last week, an Iowa nursing home was fined $10,000 for similarly pronouncing a hospice patient dead and shipping her to a nursing home when she was actually alive.
A funeral home worker unzipped the body bag the 66-year-old woman was inside and found her “gasping for air.”
The staffer called 911 and the woman was transported to a nearby hospital, where she was confirmed to be breathing, but unresponsive.
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