Denmark to dig up thousands of ‘zombie mink’ culled to prevent coronavirus spread

Denmark plans to dig up thousands of “zombie mink” that were culled to prevent COVID-19 from spreading after their bodies have since risen out of mass graves. 

Danish state broadcaster TV2 reported that hundreds of dead mink rose out of their graves as experts think the gas used to kill them caused their bodies to swell and rise, CNN reported Monday.

The zombie mink phenomenon occurred after the Danish government ordered millions of mink to be killed after discovering a dozen people became infected by a mutated version of coronavirus that was passed between humans and mink. 

The order to kill the mink was ruled as illegal, leading to Denmark’s minister for agriculture Mogens Jensen to be ousted. But the culling continued as planned, and 17 million mink were gassed and buried more than six feet below ground in a military zone in western Denmark, according to CNN.

TV2 reported that the mink will be exhumed, disinfected and reburied to solve the problem. 

As the mink began to rise, Denmark’s new minister for agriculture, Rasmus Prehn, proposed the mink be dug up and burnt with the environment agency’s approval. 

Denmark has recorded a total of 82,470 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 846 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.