PARTLY FALSE: Photo of coffins showing people who died of coronavirus in Italy

Rappler.com

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PARTLY FALSE: Photo of coffins showing people who died of coronavirus in Italy
The photo was taken in Italy, but is not connected to the current pandemic

Claim: A photo making the rounds on social media claims to show people who have died from the coronavirus in Italy.

The photo was accompanied by a text that said: “In case you’re still not convinced to stay home for you & your beloved ones… Here’s a picture from Italy!”

Other versions of the post going around online claim that the photo shows the number of people who died in Italy in one day alone due to the virus.

Facebook Page Pinoy Viral FB first posted the image on March 19, and has since gathered 372 reactions, 12 comments, and 593 shares.

A reader sent the post to Rappler for verification. Facebook Claim Check, a tool that detects posts with potentially dubious information, also flagged multiple posts containing the image.

Rating: PARTLY FALSE

The facts: The coffins in the photo are those of the victims of the Lampedusa maritime tragedy in 2013. 

Using reverse image search, the photo can be traced back to a stock photo by AFP/ALBERTO PIZZOLI on Getty Images, dated October 05, 2013.

The photo is accompanied by a caption: “Coffin[s] of victims are seen in a hangar of Lampedusa airport on October 5, 2013 after a boat with migrants sank killing more than a hundred people…” 

The shipwreck killed more than 300 migrants, and was recognized as the “worst ever Mediterranean refugee disaster.”

Photos of the coffins of the migrants lined up in the hangar were also used in a Canadian online website, The Star’s report on the incident was published on October 5, 2013.

Italy is one of the countries severely hit by COVID-19, with over 8,200 deaths and 80,589 infections recorded as of March 27. It has been under nationwide lockdown since early March to try to contain the spread of the virus. – Yusof Marohombsar/Rappler.com

Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. Let us battle disinformation one Fact Check at a time 

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